Bond of Aura
by Sapphiria
Summary: Having had enough of searching for the perfect trainer in Kalos, Froakie follows the pull in his soul to Sinnoh, where he is fished up by Dawn instead of Buizel. From there he works with Ash to understand the truth behind the strength of their Bond Phenomenon, whilst also unlocking a few hidden truths along the way. With one change brings a chance to truly become the very best.
1. A Brand New Adventure

**So I really need to get my head stuck into a story and stay there, but if I did then this wouldn't have been born.**

 **DP is known as one of the best anime series, if not on par with the love for XY and XYZ so, why not combine elements of that? Froakie's backstory states that he was constantly training to better himself as he could tell he had the power of Bond Phenomenon within him. But what if he tried to find the trainer who would grant him the power to achieve the higher heights he seeks?**

 **The Aura/Bond Phenomenon theory used within this story was made by Nerdy McNerdface so thank them for the more acceptible reason why Bond Phenomenon happens. No literally, say thank. It's a GTLive reference we use a lot.**

 **So without further adieu, I hope you enjoy and thanks for reading.**

* * *

 **A Brand-New Adventure**

Professor Sycamore sighed after he finished the call with the trainer. Once again, Froakie had been returned for refusing orders and running off when he wasn't supposed to. The Kalosian Pokémon professor stood up from his chair, picking up the notepad he had been writing in during the conversation. The last time Froakie ran away made the professor vow to buy a writing pad to take notes in if the event ever happened again. The fact that Froakie needed his own pad of notes was bad enough, the fact that this year alone had the water type go through ten trainers was off-putting at the very least. Sycamore knew that there wasn't anything wrong with Froakie – he, the Pokémon, had been tested mentally and physically for being a starter Pokémon – but it was the trainers that were the problem in this situation. It seemed as if Froakie was waiting for that once in a lifetime trainer that would fit with Froakie's style.

Oh, who was he kidding, the professor knew that Froakie was one of the few Pokémon in existence that had the power of Bond Phenomenon. The power was incredibly rare, not every Pokémon could use it but for the ability to come to use, the Pokémon needed to find their 'other half' in a way. There was a human out there, somewhere in the world, that had the same aura – to some degree – of the Pokémon with the power, which is when Bond Phenomenon became a reality. Once a Pokémon with both their selected trainer and the ability reached their final evolution, the trainer and Pokémon's auras melded together – along with their strong bond – allowing a transformation like no other.

Professor Sycamore had never seen Bond Phenomenon for himself, but recordings had helped him in his research of the power. In battle, it was as if the trainer and their Pokémon had become one. They moved in sync, shared each other's vision and pains, powered each other to amazing extremes. The more similar a trainer's aura was to their Pokémon, the more powerful the Bond Phenomenon was and with it came more effects on the trainer themselves. If a trainer and Pokémon shared the exact same aura, then something amazing happened. Nobody could understand how an orange attack was formed, but Professor Sycamore bet it was to do with aura similarity. An orange attack was the most powerful move a Pokémon with Bond Phenomenon could use, most likely their signature attack unless they never had one so the orange attack could be their favourite or most used attack. For Froakie, his orange attack would be a Water Shuriken due to Greninja being his final evolution.

This is, unless Froakie never found his other half.

If Froakie couldn't find the trainer who could unlock Bond Phenomenon, then there would be no way for the ability to come out and thus, Froakie would be another water type starter. Obviously Froakie knew this as well, which was why he was constantly running away from trainers as they weren't the ones who could help him unlock his inner ability. Froakie had always been an oddball in the group of Froakie that Professor Sycamore raised, always training himself to be better for that special trainer that would always be his partner. When the other Froakie invited him over to play or have some fun, he would always refuse and continue whatever it was he was doing. Sycamore sighed once again. Froakie couldn't help it, Pokémon with Bond Phenomenon always trained harder than any other Pokémon to ready their bodies for handling the transformation.

The professor walked towards the greenhouse in which multiple Pokémon lived, some trainer owned whilst others just enjoyed the controlled environment that suited their lifestyle. He instantly found Froakie, sat lonesome on a rock by the small lake the area housed. Sycamore watched as Froakie did nothing but stare into space, probably thinking over a new plan for training harder or wondering who the trainer was that could free his potential. Maybe the next trainer that entered his lab would be the one, maybe not but the professor couldn't help but wonder how long Froakie could wait until the perfect one walked into his life.

"Soon, Froakie, soon," Professor Sycamore said softly, hoping the Pokémon outside could hear his prayers from inside the lab. "I believe the one you're looking for will come along soon." He turned and left, heading deeper into the lab to conduct more research not knowing that Froakie had heard him and was wishing the same thing.

~0~o~0~

Froakie was dreaming, he knew it. The light blue glow of an abyss that surrounded him told him that. If he were to wake up now, the water type knew he would see the glass of Professor Sycamore's greenhouse and feel the lapping water against his body. He'd been in this dreamscape before, hearing disjointed voices calling out to him from the trainer who he knew was the one. This time there was someone else in there with him. A silhouette of a human wearing a cap with messy hair was standing in front of him, a white smile of glee visible on their blank face.

" _Froakie… find me."_

"But how?!" Froakie cried up at the silhouette with slight anger, believing that he was being played for as a fool. All of these dreams had gotten him nowhere, and this was the best one he had ever had.

" _I'm in Sinnoh, from there you should be able to trace my aura with yours. I will be able to sense you too, but I may not know it…"_ Finally! Some information! Froakie had heard of the Sinnoh region from Professor Sycamore, who had studied under the Sinnoh regional professor named Rowan for a while. He could get to Sinnoh, it was a simple boat ride away, a few hours at the least. If he left as soon as he could the next morning, then he would be in Sinnoh by late afternoon Kalos time, it would still be midday in Sinnoh when he would arrive.

"Where are you?"

" _You'll know when you'll find me…"_ The figure of the silhouette began to waver and fade from existence. _"I know you'll find me Froakie! I'll see you soon!"_ With that, the person was gone, and the blue abyss glowed brightly, blinding him until…

He woke up with a start, almost forcing himself underwater with his struggles. That dream had told him all he needed to know, well as little as he needed to know to make a start but that was all. Tomorrow he was going to leave and find this trainer but for now, it was still dark and he needed a nice rest if he was going to make the journey in the morning. That was why, the next day, Professor Sycamore couldn't find Froakie anywhere and his Poké ball was destroyed.

~0~o~0~

It had been a week or so since the day he left and now, Froakie was regretting it tremendously. Not only was the pull on his aura greater than ever, but random hillbillies were attacking him left, right and centre to try and capture him for themselves. Luckily for him, they were pretty weak and had no knowledge of what he was. He was soon referred to as the mysterious Pokémon that could beat anything. That, of course, was over exaggeration on the human's part, but he really didn't care. Days passed and the pull became stronger with each passing moment, so much so that Froakie was tempted to leave and follow it blindly. However, something would stop him from leaving the lake, telling him that he should be patient and the trainer would come to him.

Fortunately enough, that something was right.

He was happily swimming around the lake he had claimed as a temporary base when a lure had got caught on his leg and he was forcibly dragged to the surface. From being pulled out of the water, he soon realised he was hanging upside down, staring at a group of four trainers. One was a red head, a girl with sunglasses on her head with a Glameow by her side. Another was a tanned male with pointed brown hair with a huge blue backpack and, oddly enough, straight lines for eyes. The girl who had fished him up had long blue hair and a _very_ short skirt, one of which seemed tart-ish in a way. However, he really didn't care about them, his focus was on one person. The boy with messy hair, a cap, and a Pikachu on his shoulder.

He was where the pull was leading to, he was the trainer that would allow him to unlock Bond Phenomenon. A bubbling feeling of excitement welled up inside of him as he picked up the trainers' conversation.

"What is that?" The girl that fished him up asked, the Piplup by her side making a questioning sound.

"Some kind of water type, I guess?" The brown-haired male muttered as the other boy gave him a snarky look.

"Oh really, Brock? What told you that? The fact it lives in a lake?" Froakie was proud at that comeback, his future trainer seemed to be a man of words.

"Hey Dawn," The redheaded girl was smirking as she spoke, obviously finding the witty comeback funny. "Why don't you try and catch it? It is a Pokémon that you fished up."

"You're right, Zoey!" The miniskirt girl, Dawn, beamed at that – Froakie, on the other hand did not – and reeled him with her Piplup by her side. "Alright, whatever you are! I challenge you to a battle!"

"Froa kie." Froakie yawned as her Piplup rushed forwards proudly, puffing out his chest to show off to his opponent.

"Piplup, use Peck!" Dawn instructed, watching as the unknown Pokémon just stood there and did nothing as her Piplup ran at it with his beak elongating with a white light.

"Even though they are both water types, Peck should do normal damage, right?" Zoey asked Brock, who nodded with folded arms.

"That's a good first move from Dawn," He told her. "Going for a water type move wouldn't have weakened that Pokémon too much." They watched as Piplup pecked at the still form of the mystery Pokémon, only for it to burst into puffs of gas upon being hit. Instantly, Dawn broke down and cried out in horror, believing she had just killed a Pokémon somehow with her starter's Peck attack. More sensibly, Zoey and Brock were looking around for where it had gone. Obviously, the Pokémon had used a form of substitute and probably had vanished back into the lake with a wish to not be disturbed.

"Dawn, calm down, you didn't kill it…" Zoey sighed as she walked over to comfort her hyperventilating rival. "It used substitute, or a form of it, the Pokémon is fine."

"Oh… okay," She was shaking still, but relief filled Dawn's veins at the news. "So, where did it go?"

"Probably back into the lake and, not now Ash," Brock sighed as his friend for three years poked him in the shoulder. At his reply, Brock realised the poking only intensified. "What is it?"

"It's right here." Ash pointed to his leg, where the mysterious Pokémon was happily hugging his trousers with a smile of content on its face. There were three reactions to this scene; Dawn had lost her jaw to the ground – as did Piplup, Zoey looked on in awe and Brock rolled his eyes but smiled none the less. Of course Ash, who was the only person not to involve himself with Dawn's fishing of the strange Pokémon, would be the one to get its attention. It happened enough by now that Brock was used to it, to say the least.

Ash, on the other hand, was slightly confused by something. It wasn't to do with the fact a random Pokémon was hugging him, it was the fact he felt a connection to it. Something inside of him was calling him towards it, feeling a pull that he had noticed now and again for the past week, only to say it was nothing and shrug it off. Now he knew it was more than nothing, it was to do with this, Froakie – Pikachu had signed some things and pointed to the water type when it had spoken earlier – who had just been fished up out of nowhere by Dawn. A part of him wanted to tell her to back off and let him keep Froakie, who needed two water types on a contest team anyway, but as her mentor Ash knew that he should keep quiet and let her catch the Pokémon she fished up.

"Hey, I want to catch it…" Dawn muttered with slight annoyance, pouting her cheeks out at the revelation that the Pokémon _she_ fished up liked her friend better.

"Sorry Dawn," She smiled as Ash knelt down to Froakie and talked to it gently. "Look, I know we have some kinda connection or something but at least give Dawn a chance to catch you as she did fish you out." He laughed as Froakie grumbled about it but nodded none the less. "Thanks a lot Froakie, I really appreciate it." The water type looked up at him with wonderment at how the boy knew his name. "Pikachu… well signed to me what your name is, it isn't that hard to guess when you literally say your name to us humans."

Froakie took the explanation, sighing as he hopped back to the miniskirt girl, who he really thought should buy a pair of leggings or something cause anyone shorter than her waist could see right up her skirt, even if they didn't want to. He'd seen people like that in Kalos, and it only repulsed him into running away from trainers who didn't have common decency. Froakie knew the others called him picky, Froakie called himself classy instead. At least he had a taste in life, and a better taste in trainers for that matter. Froakie didn't want to battle this proud little creature that had taken their place in front of him, but he knew he had to because the girl wanted to catch him.

"Alright Piplup, Peck once more!" Dawn instructed with her starter following the exact same actions from earlier. This time, Froakie didn't use his frubbles but, instead, jumped up into the air with multiple copies following him, as formed from a Double Team.

"Be careful Dawn!" Zoey called out to her rival. "It seems like it's got a plan in mind!" Why couldn't this Dawn girl be more like that Zoey? At least she gets that he was more than just a catch cause of fishing rights. The multiple copies joined him in using Pound against the confused Piplup below, knocking it around like a toy that had been thrown into the air. Of course, the miniskirt girl was a newbie so she had no idea how to deal with it. That meant he could make this quick. Compared to that pampered bird, Froakie had trained hard for today and wasn't going to let her win. Before Piplup could regain any control or sense, a Water Pulse was fired right into his face, sending him flying back into Dawn's arms with swirls for eyes.

"Piplup is unable to battle… urrr Froakie? Is it Froakie?" Brock turned to Ash, who nodded back as a reply. "Right, Froakie wins!"

"Don't worry Dawn, you'll get better at catching stronger Pokémon with time," The red haired coordinator smiled reassuringly as Dawn sighed with slight upset at her loss. "But I think it's for the better."

"Why do you think that?" Zoey simply pointed at the frog Pokémon who was rubbing his head against Ash's leg with a content smile. That showed Dawn who Froakie wanted to go with, and it wasn't her. "Oh, but why does… uh…?"

"Froakie."

"What? As I was saying, why does Froakie like Ash already?" The bluenette was thoroughly confused by the water types actions. "I fished it up so it shouldn't really like any of us, especially since it beat all of those other trainers for trying to catch it."

"I dunno," Zoey turned to Brock, who was watching as Froakie un-expectantly jumped up into Ash's arms, surprising the trainer so much he fell backwards with Pikachu still clinging onto his shoulder. "Brock, is that usual for him?"

"For Ash? Anything is possible." After a few years, more like three, of travelling together; Brock was used to the craziness that was travelling with Ash Ketchum that also included mythical and legendary Pokémon. The breeder had a feeling that they had seen every legendary there was out there, excluding Raikou for some reason but it was theorised that Pikachu's power kept it away. The other three trainers watched on as Froakie continued to hug the life out of Ash, with Pikachu joining in for fun when a net flew out of nowhere and snagged the three up.

"What the?!" The group looked up at the Meowth shaped balloon hovering overhead before everyone, minus Zoey, groaned loudly. "Oh, Team Rocket."

"Listen, is that a voice I hear?"

"It's speaking to me loud and clear."

"On the wind!"

"Past the stars!"

"In your ear!"

"Bringing chaos at a breakneck pace."

"Dashing hope, putting fear in its place."

"A rose by any other name is just as sweet."

"When everything's worse, our work is complete."

"Jessie!"

"And it's James!"

"And Meowth, now that's a name!"

"Putting the do-gooders in their place..."

"...we're Team Rocket..."

"...in your face!"

"Wobbuffet!"

The trio of villains looked very pleased with themselves, posing as they recited their motto to the trainers below them.

"Now we have the powerful lake Pokémon and Pikachu!" Jessie boasted, before realising the net was heavier than usual. "Oh, and I guess we caught the twerp too."

"Well whose fault was that for forgetting he was there?" James snarkily replied, only for two sets of eyes to land on Meowth.

"Oi! You two were on lookout!" Meowth snarled back, causing an argument between the three. Because of that error, they didn't notice that their catch of the day had cut through the net and had re-joined the others on the lake side, not looking especially pleased.

"We've only been in the chapter for 27 lines!" James wailed as a familiar sparkle crackled from Pikachu's cheeks, with the water type powering up a Water Pulse between its hands.

"At least that's something for the first chapter." Jessie argued back, placing her hands on her hips.

"Yeah Jimmy, look at it this way, at least the author gave us some screen time!" Meowth responded as the Thunderbolt and Water Pulse edged closer and closer until… it destroyed the balloon like always.

"We're blasting off for the first time this series!" Team Rocket cried as they flew across the sky, disappearing with a twinkle along with Wobbuffet's traditional say of his name.

"Lines, chapter, series, author?" Zoey raised an eyebrow at Brock, who shook his head back at her.

"They're crazy, just yesterday they were talking about episodes and animators," He turned his attention back to his male friend. "Are you guys okay?"

"Yeah. We're fine, right?" Pikachu and Froakie nodded in agreement before hopping onto his shoulders. "They never learn, do they?"

"Guess not," Dawn's arms tightened around Piplup as she forced a small smile. "I did kinda want to catch a Pokémon today but, it's awesome that Froakie likes you."

Her words reminded Ash of something, more importantly someone. His Aipom. Aipom loved contests, even an idiot could see that. She would often run off from training just to watch Dawn's contest practices and even use the method of showing off her moves during mock battles. Aipom had also been hanging around Dawn a lot, enjoying the sparkles and glitter that contests had to offer. He loved his Pokémon dearly and would do anything to make them happier and, if that meant letting them go he would happily to it. In another world, it may have been a while before he was told to do this but he was going to hit two Pidgey with one stone – unlike the one Spearow he hit on his first day of training.

Without a word, he released Aipom from her Poké Ball, allowing her to get used to the fact she had been called out. She looked up at him and tipped her head to one side in confusion.

"Aipom, I want you to be honest with me… do you prefer contests over Gym battles?" Ignoring the gasps from everyone else, Ash kept his eyes on the normal type, who nodded slowly to show her lack of knowledge on how her trainer would react. "I knew it, in that case… Aipom I think it's for the best that Dawn trains you from now on. I'll still be around and you can steal my hat as much as you want but now you can do the thing you love instead of being forced into my kind of battle, okay?" It took a while for Aipom to process it but, soon enough, she was hugging him happily.

"Are you sure that's okay?!" Dawn's eyes were wide at the idea of Ash giving away a Pokémon of his, especially to her.

"I want what's best for Aipom and if she loves contests more than battles, it's a no brainer," he chuckled nervously afterwards, rubbing his hand against the back of his head. "And I guess it's a trade for Froakie, but Aipom's wellbeing comes first and I don't wanna make her battle my way if she prefers a contest style." Ash walked over to Dawn and dropped Aipom's Poké Ball into her outstretched hand. "I know the two of you will do amazingly in contests together. Just don't make me regret my choice…" He noticed her worried expression and, once again, nervously laughed in response. "I know you won't but I'll still be around to help you out if you need it!"

"Thank you…" The bluenette clutched the Poké Ball tightly and her face lit up into a proper smile. "I guess that means I've got to start working on a routine with Aipom now, right?" Aipom, who had run over to her, nodded and jumped up and down, with Piplup cheering from her shoulder – having moved up there after he almost fell due to losing an arm for the Poké Ball exchange.

"Piplup, Buneary, Pachirisu and Aipom," Brock couldn't help but feel the same joy his younger friend was at the handover. "You are shaping up to have a nice team there, Dawn."

"Aren't we forgetting something?" Dawn had picked up Aipom for a cuddle, but focused her attention on Ash. "You have to catch Froakie now, right?"

"Yeah, you're right," He looked towards the water frog perched on his usually free shoulder and smiled at him. "So, you wanna battle or, oh, okay?" Froakie had nimbly turned himself around so he could tap an empty Poké Ball from Ash's belt, being sucked in immediately with only a few shakes before the ding sounded his capture. "I caught Froakie, I guess…"

"I'd have thought the great Pokémon of the lake would want a fight but no," Zoey shook her head in disbelief. "It just let itself get captured." She looked over at Dawn, who had pulled out her Pokédex and aimed it at Froakie, who had just let himself out back onto his previous shoulder position.

"What?! No data!" Dawn's shout brought everyone else over to see if this was the truth, which it was. "Brock, what do we do?"

"I guess calling Professor Rowan would be the first thing to do," The eighteen-year-old replied, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "He might know something about Froakie that we don't as it seems it's from another region entirely. Professor Oak may know something as well."

"What are we waiting for then, let's go!" Dawn grinned, running back into the forest with Piplup and Aipom at her heels.

Zoey just shook her head once more. "I'd best head off. Tell Dawn the next contest is in Hearthome City for me, okay guys?"

"Sure thing, Zoey."

"And good luck with that Froakie of yours," She turned towards Ash with an expression that may have been close to a smile. "I have a feeling that the two of you may be powerful together someday, especially with how Froakie took to you so quickly." With that, she left with Glameow at her heels.

"Let's go and catch up with Dawn then," Brock pulled his egg out of his backpack so he could carry it. "She will get mad if we leave her alone for a while."

"Yeah, and I thought she was mad when her hair wasn't right." Ash joked, running on ahead with Froakie and Pikachu on his shoulders. Whatever Froakie was, or however the two of them were connected didn't matter at the moment, for now he was just excited about the idea that his second Gym Badge was not too far away.


	2. The Truth About Froakie and Ash

**I am seriously shocked at the reception the first chapter got, in a week of being up. I can't thank you guys enough for taking the time to read this. I had no idea that this little thought of mine would actually be enjoyable to many people so once again, thank you. And thanks to those behind the C2 that this story is already in. I am glad my story has decent enough grammar, that was kind of a worry of mine.**

 **So, a couple of days later than I had hoped, I prefer to have a weekly upload schedule for this fic, here his chapter two!**

 **Oh and before that, here's the answers to the reviews from chapter 1:**

 **Batguy2000: Why thank you! I have read a lot of Froakie starter stories, and the intial concept for my next story was a mix of that and Pokemon raising but I threw that out of the window when I wondered about the Sinnoh League and watched a couple of DP episodes in my free time. With Pokemon, there will be the similarity of the team, but there will be differences such as when and where a capture/evolution takes place and if it does. There is one Pokemon from Ash's original DP team that won't be appearing on this one, you can probably guess who that is in a couple of chapters' time. With characters, it will be DP plus Professor Sycamore, no Alain yet, sorry. Buizel may make an appearance but Ash won't get him, he has Froakie for that. Oh, I'm looking forward to writing those battles, especially with Greninja here.**

 **mewmaster89: You will have to wait a while, we're still in the tenth season of the anime in comparison. Also, this is the next chapter so, wish granted?**

 **Toa Solaric: Oh, he will be fighting, I can promise you that for nothing. Just, not for a while, that's all.**

 **Selet: Sycamore's about to find out about Froakie in this chapter. Yeah, it's a new one for Froakie joining Ash early stories but I wanted him to be more mature and experienced and thus, the Sinnoh region. Plus Sinnoh was my start to Pokemon so I really love this region a lot. It has the best trainer battle theme, although the best character theme has to go to Wally, sorry Cynthia.**

 **fangs of death: It just popped up in my brain, and I'm glad you found it interesting. Thank you and I hope you enjoy more!**

 **Phantomsoul2015: Ur, no. Chimchar hasn't been caught yet. It's set from DP 34 onwards, before Cynthia steps in and Chimchar starts to take centre stage.**

 **ShadowStriker: Yeah, I agree with you there. Aipom is a contester by heart and, quick FYI, she's not going anywhere for a long time. Ash won't get a Buizel, because he has Froakie, but someone else may get him, who knows. I'm glad you liked it and found it awesome.**

 **Poke-Jedi Master Stotler: I am. Oh, Ash-Greninja will make it's debut WAY before the Sinnoh League, and what happens during the league and afterwards? Only I know that as of now but hopefully you'll like my plans for it.**

 **AlphaDD: I missed that about them in BW and XY, DP Team Rocket were awesome. I am going to include more Fourth Wall Breaks and Boss Fantasies, if anyone remembers those from DP.**

 **Agoge: I haven't focused on that this chapter, but it will come up in the next one. As for the changes, there will be a few.**

 **TheFauxWriter. Thanks, I'm glad I got their personalities okay, especially since their ages are different to the anime. I don't plan on doing that at all. Ash will progressively get stronger, as will Dawn, and he will not suddenly be OP and all knowing, I think the next few chapters may cement my plans for their development for you.**

 **With that done, I hope you enjoy and thanks for reading.**

* * *

 **The Truth about Froakie and Ash**

Professor Rowan had never expected a call from Dawn so soon, yet alone a call asking about a Pokémon that her Pokédex couldn't register. He was sitting at his desk whilst Dawn used overexaggerating gestures to tell the story of how they found the Pokémon the call was about, only interrupting her when she began making an absolute fool of herself in the Pokémon Center they were staying in.

"So, this Pokémon is a water type, hmm?" The professor asked her as she calmed down.

"Yep! It sure is! It could use Water Pulse and lived in a lake 'cause I fished it up!" She frowned before turning to face someone who was offscreen. "Hey, Ash! Can you bring Froakie over here for a bit?" Rowan's eyes bulged at her words. A Froakie was in Sinnoh? How? He remembered that Augustine Sycamore studied under him for a while, an aspiring professor from Kalos who told him all about the starters and Mega Evolution, which was a stable part of Kalosian life. Did Sycamore know that somehow – unless a trainer from Kalos had released it – that a Froakie was in the Sinnoh region? He'd have to tell the children to call him up, or do a three-way call.

As he was thinking, the two children had already returned to the screen, with Froakie sitting happily on his trainer's shoulder without a care in the world. It was the creature's cry that brought Rowan down from his scientifically run world in the sky, bringing a look of awe to the trainers on the other end of the call. Having been Sycamore's teacher for a while, the two men had continued to stay in contact and would bounce theories and ideas off of each other whilst just talking about daily life. Just yesterday Augustine was telling him about this rogue Froakie that had crushed its own Poké Ball and had run away from yet another trainer who didn't meet its standards. Rowan just had a feeling that this Froakie, the only one seen in Sinnoh thus far, was the one that his ex-apprentice was talking about.

"Amazing, I have never seen a Froakie in Sinnoh before," the Professor spoke, drawing himself out of his thoughts. "They normally are found in the Kalos region."

"Kalos?" Ash inquired, never having heard of it before. Rowan noticed Froakie's nod, confirming his theory about the Pokémon's origin.

"Yes, it's a region that's not too far from here," he put his attention onto the water type. "I've heard about you from Augustine, it's nice to see you've finally found a trainer you trust in." Four faces – Brock had come over to listen into the conversation – stared back at him in confusion, causing the professor to chuckle heartily. "Froakie actually belongs to the Kalos region's professor, Professor Sycamore. However, from what I've heard from him, Froakie broke his Poké Ball and ran away from the lab after being returned by a new trainer."

"So Froakie was abandoned?" Brock raised an eyebrow, noticing Ash's gritted teeth and clenched fists at the word. The two of them had come across many an abandoned Pokémon in their time travelling together and both felt the same way about the subject, Brock was just able to reign his emotions back better than Ash could.

"Far from it," Rowan shook his head slowly. "Froakie abandoned its trainer and ignored their commands. Professor Sycamore believes he knows why but that's something you need to ask him yourselves. I have a hunch it's something to do with his latest thesis topic."

"So how do we get in contact with Professor Sycamore?" Dawn butted in, considering she was the only one who had recovered from the shock of Froakie's actions. It didn't seem to be a rebellious type, especially with how well it was getting on with Ash.

"I could set up a three-way call between us considering that Froakie was found in my region of study…" The professor nodded to himself with a grin. "Yes, that's what I'll do. Please hold on for a second you three." He tapped furiously at his keyboard before the screen split into half and another man with messy navy hair popped up on the other screen.

"What's the matter this time Shaun… Froakie?!" The other man's jaw was hanging loose, staring at the trio with a certain water type waving at him whilst clutching at Ash's vest. "You really did find the one by yourself, didn't you?"

"I had a feeling that's why it was here," Rowan spoke up before the children could get a word in edgeways. "Froakie's appearance has something to do with your newest research topic, what was it again? Umm…"

"Bond Phenomenon," Sycamore laughed at his old mentor's forgetfulness. "I knew Froakie had it from testing but had no idea the trainer who matched him was currently in your region."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa… hold up," The professors' attention turned to the male trainer who had the topic of their conversation perched happily on his shoulder. "What are you talking about? And what is Bond Phenomenon…" Ash looked behind him at Brock and Dawn who had dropped their jaws at him. "Oh, ha ha, very funny guys. I know how to speak big words and yes, I know what Phenomenon means!"

Professor Sycamore stared at the boy before speaking. "What might your name be?"

"I'm Ash, sir, from Pallet Town in Kanto," Pikachu squeaked up furiously, sending out a chatter of mixed parts of his name. "Oh, sorry, and this is my starter and best friend, Pikachu… well best Pokémon friend… Pikachu, don't give me that look. I can have more than one best friend."

"You seem very close," Sycamore noted, before smiling at the group. Froakie seemed to have picked, or seemed to have the same aura as, a rather unusual trainer. There weren't many people who included their Pokémon into their introduction, especially introducing them as their best friend. "I can see Froakie reaching new heights with you via Bond Phenomenon."

"Excuse me, the name's Brock and I hate to be rude but," The ex-Gym Leader decided to make his voice heard, and to get an answer to Ash's earlier question. "What on earth is Bond Phenomenon?"

"Sorry, I lost track there. Bond Phenomenon is a rare occurrence where a fully evolved Pokémon and their trainer can unlock a transformation that goes beyond the power of the final evolutionary stage," The Kalosian Professor explained simply. Unlike he was, the trainers weren't well versed in scientific language. "It happens when a trainer and a Pokémon have a similar aura and their bond is really strong. Not every Pokémon has this power, so it's rare to find one that has."

"Wow! That sounds so cool!" Dawn's eyes sparkled as she leaned in closer, not noticing the worried glances of Brock and Ash. The last time they had heard of the word aura, they almost died and an ancient habitat for Pokémon was nearly destroyed… oh and yeah, a Lucario from the past gave his life so that they could live. It wasn't the best adventure and Brock was sure Ash had nightmares for weeks afterwards due to the fact it was revealed he had the power as well. "You said Ash and Froakie could do it, does that mean Froakie is one of those Pokémon?"

"Yes, he is," Sycamore nodded at her enthusiasm. "I'll tell you more about it when Froakie becomes a Greninja, since the power won't manifest until Froakie is fully evolved. However, I'm guessing you want to learn more about Froakie, am I right?" Three heads nodded, giving him his answer. "Ash, was it? Can you slot your Pokédex into the flashing area and I'll update it for you so you can have the information on Froakie's line, okay?" Doing as he was told, Ash slotted his Pokédex into the computer shaped device below the screen from which they were communicating with. A few seconds later, it was released and – once opened – revealed to have a page on Froakie ready to read.

"Thank you."

"It was no problem at all," the younger professor smiled. "Anyway, I best be off, I have a meeting in a bit apparently. Oh, and by the way, take good care of Froakie for me. I'm looking forward to hearing from you when Froakie fully evolves, okay?" Before anyone could answer him, a woman shouted at him from offscreen and Sycamore quickly ended his half of the call. Rowan's face quickly took over the entire screen, sighing as he did so.

"That boy never changed," he turned his attention back to the group. "I hope that's given you some information towards Froakie and its rare ability. If you have any more inquires then please contact me at the earliest convenience. I too must be leaving, and good luck with your next Gym match and your next contest." With that, he too ended the conversation, leaving the trio to stare at a blank, black screen. As they turned to each other, still taking in all that had been given to them, a certain group of semi-villainous creeps peeked their heads around the corner.

"So that Pokémon is called a Froakie huh? It must be very rare if it's a starter Pokémon from a far-off region!" Jessie smirked from her upper head position from behind the wall.

"Didn't you hear them Jess?" Meowth hissed up at her from the bottom with furrowed brows. "When that Froakie fully evolves, it's gonna have this weird transformation thing with the twerp! We can't get that rare power without needing the twerp for it."

"For now, we should just stick to aiming for Pikachu until we can figure out a way to make that rare power work for us," James spoke from in-between the two. "At least then we can track this Froakie's power in the hands of the twerp."

"That's a clever idea, James." The female thief spoke up, rubbing her hand against her chin. "And when the time is right, we can get that super rare Pokémon for the boss. Meowth, do your thing!"

"With pleasure, imagine this…" Meowth dived into the realm of the 'Boss Fantasies' where he imagined what could happen if the trio caught a specific Pokémon for their boss, Giovanni. "The Boss is sick of losing time and time again to rare Pokémon that could be caught for the power of Team Rocket, that is until our Bond Phenomenon Froakie… or whatever its final evolution is, hops in to beat all of the other Pokémon until they can be captured with its more powerful transformation and you know what the Boss will say? 'I have to thank Meowth and friends for helping me solve my issue, they deserve everything they desire in life!' Dig it?" As this was going on, the three were imagining their boss actually going through this issue, trying desperately to figure out what this rare form might look like based on the tiny blue frog on the twerp's shoulder.

"We'll be in the green!" Jessie squealed happily, imagining herself sitting on a throne made out of wads of cash, being served by hot men in speedos.

"And be in the best ranks of Team Rocket!" James added, seeing the three of them as executives next to those like Ariana, Petrel and Archer.

"Soon I'll be the top cat of the organisation, not that pampered Persian!" Meowth growled at the thought of his evolutionary form, who was lording it high and mighty on Giovanni's lap like a pampered princess. Unlike the Persian that was the sole being of which Meowth's hatred was born from, Meowth actually was a part of helping to make Team Rocket an organisation that could be able to take over the world one day, out in the field instead of being constantly groomed without the need to lift a finger. The scratch cat Pokémon scoffed at the idea of the Persian being involved in a battle, he believed that Persian had never battled in its life.

"Let's get the plan ready for the future, and whilst we're at it we should really plan another Pikachu capture!" The three bumbling idiots cheered and rushed off to form their next big scheme to capture the yellow furred rodent who was blissfully unaware of their position at the moment as he was more worried about his trainer, who had gone scaringly quiet in the last few minutes.

~0~o~0~

Dawn was training with Aipom on the battlefield outside the Pokémon Center and, immediately Ash realised he made the right choice in handing her over to the coordinator. Aipom was thoroughly enjoying herself in showing off her moves, creating sparkles as the normal type pranced across the field. He was sitting at the side, taking the time to get to know Froakie better whilst Pikachu oversaw the training for his team. They had all met Froakie and had immediately welcomed him to the team, with Turtwig being especially kind to the newest addition. Staravia and Turtwig learnt of Aipom's trainer switch but, once they knew the reason for it, didn't mind at all and congratulated Aipom on her new path in life, wishing her luck for her contest debut.

Brock was cleaning his egg for the thirty fifth time when he noticed the forlorn expression on his best friend's face as he stared at the Pokédex entry for Froakie. What Professor Sycamore had told them must have left a lasting impression on Ash, who had stated outright he wanted nothing to do with aura after their adventures in the Kingdom of Rota. When Max had stupidly asked about the whole aura power thing, both he and May were surprised to hear Ash snap at them before running off. Brock, being the more responsible member of the group, went after him and found out everything.

Especially everything to do with Lucario's death.

Lucario had overexerted his aura, every last drop pulled from his body to heal Mew until he was nothing but a glowing, shaking mess as his end drew closer and closer. Brock remembered holding his friend in a hug, feeling Ash's tears dampen his shoulders as the boy cried, cried for Lucario's loss and the fear that he could do the same thing one day if he ever went down the path of aura. No matter how many times that the duo had faced life threatening experiences, they both didn't want to die that young with so much to live for. The power of aura frightened Ash, who didn't want to wield it for fears that it could be used to kill and could, in turn, kill him as well.

The two males had practically buried all thoughts about aura, until that morning when the word came back up again. From what the Kalos region professor had told them, it seemed the life force was a key player in this transformation. Of course, they didn't know the details but it didn't seem as if Bond Phenomenon could end up being anything like the Lucario Incident, especially if there were documented cases of it somewhere in the world. The professor was studying it as a part of the thesis he was writing, meaning he must have had a few cases up his sleeve surrounding the ability.

"Are you okay?" Brock watched as his younger friend jumped at the sound of his voice, before giving him a half-hearted smile back.

"Yeah, nothing to worry about here, Brocko!" Whilst the usage of the nickname was a bit uplifting, the rewording of Dawn's signature catchphrase instantly made the response lower in credibility.

"You know when someone says that, it's when I worry the most," The breeder put his egg gently back into its incubator and edged closer to Ash on the bench. "So, spill the beans. You're thinking about what that Professor Sycamore guy was saying about aura, weren't you?"

"Yeah," Ash sighed, putting his Pokédex back into his pocket so he could use his hands as rests on the bench as he leant backwards, staring at the sky. "I just don't want anything bad to happen, you know? I mean, I don't wanna end up like Lucario did. I know he died as a heroic sacrifice to save the Tree of Beginning but, I… I don't think I could be a hero if it means that I'm constantly on the edge of dying."

"I understand," Brock said, not used to seeing this side of Ash often. Normally, he kept it bottled up as to not upset anyone else but, for some reason, he let everything flow out around Brock and the breeder was highly grateful for that little piece of mercy. "You're scared about it, and I have a feeling that everything's going to be okay. A qualified Pokémon Professor wouldn't be allowed to study a subject which equated in the harming of either trainer or Pokémon. Evil organisation doctor? Yeah, they could study that stuff as much as they wanted but professors like Professor Rowan who could have their licence revoked at the slightest hint of any damage? I don't think this Bond Phenomenon thing could hurt you or Froakie, or anyone around you."

"But it's a Phenomenon… Oh not again!" Ash's childlike pout did nothing but make Brock laugh harder than before. "Look, just because I left home at ten doesn't mean I didn't know what a dictionary was! I know what Phenomenon means too! It's an extraordinary occurrence that happens not very often!" His argument wasn't helping much as Brock was still laughing with the image of the pout in his head. "Urgh, seriously, and I'm the younger one of the two of us?"

"Sorry, I couldn't help it…" After wiping a tear or two from his eyes, Brock motioned for his friend to continue.

"As I was saying, Bond Phenomenon is exactly that, a Phenomenon! I didn't even know it existed until a few hours ago, I'm sure Professor Oak and even Lance don't know it exists and yet I'm supposed to be the other part of Froakie's ability when aura is involved and I have no idea what it means or anything." Another sigh, a longer one this time, escaped the thirteen-year-old's lips. "That Professor Sycamore said he'd give us the full info once Froakie fully evolved or something like that."

"Which means you don't need to worry about it right now," Brock spoke up with a reassuring tone. "In between now and Froakie's final evolution into…?"

"It's says it's called Greninja."

"Greninja, the professors' have time to study this thing even further than they have now, meaning we will know everything by the time Froakie has fully evolved." He placed a hand on the younger trainer's shoulder. "I get that this frightens you and it kinda does for me too, but we have to look at the positives right now. Aipom is doing amazingly with Dawn and Froakie already really seems to like you." Their heads turned to the sleeping figure of the water type, who was curled into Ash's leg with a smile of content of his face. "If there is anyone I know that could master this power of Bond Phenomenon, then it would be you. After all of our crazy shenanigans then something like this which could be really useful in battle would be a breeze for you."

"You think so?" As he asked, Ash gently began to stroke Froakie's head, who leaned into the touch automatically. "I guess you're right. No one knows what the future truly holds so we should just take every day as it comes and make the most of it."

"Now you get it," Brock stood up, picking up his incubator as he did so. "I'm going to set up for lunch, if you need anything I'll be over there okay?" When he received the nod of dismissal, the eighteen-year-old turned to leave the bench area until a call of his name made him turn back around. "Yes, what is it?"

"Thanks for talking to me," For the first time since this morning, Ash gave him a proper smile with his teeth showing slightly. "I really needed the support."

"No problem, what are friends for?" Brock sent one last supportive grin back towards his friend of three years before he turned back and made his way off to get lunch ready for the group. For a while, Ash just stared up at the sky, mulling over everything that had happened that morning before coming to a conclusion. Nothing was going to make him give up Froakie, he vowed that with any type of promise that he could viably do, and if this Bond Phenomenon was truly a power that could make Froakie even stronger than ever, he would do anything in his power, aura included, to help Froakie reach it. That meant Froakie would have to train with his other Pokémon, train as hard as he could to defeat Gym Leaders and from there, beat the league.

During this self-reflection, he didn't notice that his other Pokémon had sauntered over and curled up with him too, now snoring their heads off in a blissful sleep. Ash couldn't help but laugh and smile at them. After lunch, the training for Gym badge number two would begin and he would not be holding back, especially with what happened to Turtwig only a few days ago. The comfort of his Pokémon surrounding him, and the support of the wall against his back felt reassuring in a way, so much so that he too fell asleep were he sat.

And that was how Brock and Dawn found them when lunch was ready, and neither of them had the heart to wake them up. Luckily, the smell of good cooking did it for them.

* * *

 **One last thing, a reminder of the teams thus far.**

 **Ash: Pikachu, Staravia, Turtwig, Froakie**

 **Dawn: Piplup, Buneary, Pachirisu, Aipom**

 **Brock: Sudowoodo, Crogunk, Egg**


	3. The Hidden Enemy's Orb Goal

**Hi there, guys! I reached a deadline on time!**

 **Anyway, So for those many of you who began asking this after chapter 2 was over, Aura is a hugely prominent thing in my story. Maybe not yet, but soon enough it will be. The Riolu episode is coming... but with a twist! There will be more about Riley and Sir Aaron, and even more about Aura itself so don't worry your heads off, I will be mentioning everything there is about it in BOA's universe (Bond of Aura's acronym, it even spells a word!)**

 **So, general point over, onto specific reviews!**

 **scribe0magic: I believe Chimchar is in the roster... YEP! Chimchar is on the team! Don't worry about Chimchar, since Paul is in this story then Chimchar is too and thus will be Ash's soon enough. Also, the Blaze/Bond Phenomenon theory doesn't work with the BOA version of Bond Phenomenon. Here a specific Aura is required for both Trainer and Pokemon. Considering Ash and Riolu ALSO have the same aura, It think it's a bit too OP to give Infernape the same power, so it will just have a powerful Blaze.**

 **Batguy2000: I kinda thought about the whole mental trauma of the movie whilst re-watching it, thinking about how it would ACTUALLY have affected the cast, especially Ash who has the power that ended up being Sir Aaron's and Lucario's downfall. As for the movies, I'd have to do them outside the story as this would be huge enough as it is. I dunno. Would you guys like 5-10 chapter Pokemon movies outside of the story? I'll put a poll up in two chapters time to see the decision. With the J thing, she may take interest in Froakie, but what is one half of Bond Phenomenon without the other half, am I right?**

 **MiraculousDragonMaster: I aim to please, this story isn't just serious and edgey, it's pretty jokey half the time since it's based on the DP series which, in my opinion, has the best Team Rocket incarnation of the bunch. So many forth wall jokes and boss fantasies! Plus, you have an eleven year old, a thirteen year old (And he knows it) and an eighteen year old as your main cast. I think it may be funny sometimes. Oh, the Aura thing will get worse before it gets better, trust me. Ash is going to be fearful of it for a while yet. Sinnoh did gave four seasons.**

 **Toa Solaric: Like I said, it'll get worse before it gets better.**

 **Phantomsoul2015: There is one Pokemon from his Sinnoh Team that WILL NOT make it on the final BOA team, and that someone will be revealed in the chapter after the next one, so chapter 5.**

 **Mighty ranger 1: Oh boy, the shipping question. Simple answer, No. I like the Ash-Greninja form too, but it'll be different from his Kalos one. I might need to ask someone to make a Sinnoh Ash-Greninja form at some point but Froakie is still a Froakie so we have a while yet.**

 **Nerdy McNerdface: It is the theorist themself! I praise thee! Glad you liked the trauma part, I worked hard on that and I'm surprised it hasn't been used in any story you've read. Nerdy, bromance all the way! Brock and Ash are best buds, everyone knows that! I can see Brock being an older brother figure to his companions. Uh uh huh, I need to keep some secrets!**

 **Amourshiper35: Uh, yeah I have confirmed that Ash-Greninja will be happening in the future, just not right now as Froakie is... well not a Greninja. Plus I enjoyed writing the talk between bros, it was an emotional piece to say the least.**

 **twilight sparkle: There won't be any pairings outside of cannon ones, I'm not good at writing shipping stories.**

 **Marcellasnow231: Don't worry, I would never forget that episode, it's my favourite from DP! Plus, read my first paragraph. I promise I won't forget those things at all.**

 **That being said and done, I hope you enjoy and thanks for reading!**

* * *

 **The Hidden Enemy's Orb Goal**

To be honest, it wasn't every day that one entered a museum only to be locked in by the burglary alarm. Of course, Dawn wanted to check out the place as they had a Coordinator exhibit running and she used the age-old excuse of 'checking it out might help me with my contests'. However, they were travelling with a certain thirteen-year-old, who was the biggest trouble magnet in the history of the universe which meant that anything could happen with a visit to some simple museum. With the sound of the smashing of glass moments earlier, it was pretty clear what the thieves were after.

The main exhibit, the Adamant Orb.

Now, any ordinary person would wait for the police to enter and come and deal with the situation, not run to the scene of the crime. Well, the group weren't ordinary people and did just that, coming into the main exhibit room with a glimpse of the thieves on the balcony above. There was a man, woman and – oddly enough – a Sunflora. The man was dressed all in a dark turquoise with the woman in a burgundy sort of one-piece suit. Even with all of that, there was one thing that the thieves hadn't accounted for, the fact their Sunflora had a coin charm on its head and their hairstyles weren't any different from their normal appearance. So, even an idiot could tell that these 'expert' thieves were in fact Team Rocket. Well, Brock and Ash could, Dawn didn't.

Well, Team Rocket made their job easier by trying to shut up their 'Sunflora' when it called out of the twerp's arrival.

"We're supposed to be thieves with class!" The woman, Jessie, hissed at the struggling Sunflora, Meowth, in her arms.

"You crooks, give it back now!" Dawn yelled up at them, saying the most generic phrase she could ever say. It was so generic, her older friends rolled their eyes, only to flush with embarrassment when they remembered that they used to say the exact same things at her age so they shouldn't have been that judgemental.

"Of course, we won't!"

"The Adamant Orb is as legendary as we are!" The male thief, James, snarkliy remarked as their masked Wobbuffet jumped up to add him his opinion.

"Luckily then, you won't have it for long!" A female officer with cyan hair rushed in with a purple Pokémon, named Stunky as Ash's Pokédex told the group, readying herself for an arrest. Ash groaned as, by his side, Brock immediately went head over heels for the Eterna City's Officer Jenny. Internally, he reminded himself to slap some sense into the eighteen-year-old who was driven by hormones over common sense. "Stunky, ten-hut!" At her command, the Stunky positioned itself into a handstand, which was the prime position to release its foul odour.

"I'm not smelling of farts!" Jessie scowled, pulling a Poké Ball seemingly out of thin air. "Serviper, Haze!"

"Oh no you don't!" Ash reached for a Poké Ball of his own. "Staravia, Gust!" The bird was released as the thick black smog covered the room, causing the inhabitants to cough and hack until Staravia managed to give them enough room to breathe.

"Close all exits!" Jenny coughed out as loudly as she could. "Don't let anyone in or out!" As per her word, the electronic doors to each room closed down, trapping everyone inside the building. Outside, more police backup was arriving, meaning more men were around to help get testimony and clear up some issues. With the smog now cleared, more policemen and women were investigating the scene, tapping off the case which the Adamant Orb once rested in.

"We came in as the orb was being taken," Brock told the male officer in charge of questioning them. "The thieves were dressed like costumed heroes and their Sunflora was slightly off…"

"Slightly?!" Ash interrupted, crossing his arms with a raised eyebrow. "We both know that was Meow… MPHHH!" A hand was quickly plastered against his mouth, along with the elder one whispering in his ear.

"You know they'll think we're crazy if we mention a talking Pokémon." Whilst there was truth to Brock's words, there really wasn't a reason to be hiding the fact of Meowth's ability since the Sinnoh Police force had come into connection with Team Rocket multiple times already.

"Thanks for telling us everything you know, and thanks for acting so quickly. Without your assistance, we wouldn't have been able to seal everything off so quickly." The officer replied before walking off to go an interview another person. From there, the trio were about to head back into the crowd when a scream of anguish rose above the noise of the crowd.

"WHAT?! YOU SERIOUSLY THINK A GRASS TYPE WAS INVOLVED WITH THIS CALAMITY?! WHY I AM APPAULED!" A orange haired woman at the front of the barricade, one the group knew every well, shouted at a now sweating officer.

"Gardenia?" Dawn asked as they walked over to her.

"It's you three! It's nice to see you guys again." Gardenia smiled, only to regret it as Brock went full on 'I love you more than anyone in the world' mode which he had been in with Officer Jenny mere moments earlier.

"And it's lovely to see you!" He cried out with glee, his eyes having somehow changed into love hearts. With a flash of the Poké Ball in his pocket, Brock's Croagunk appeared to use Poison Jab only to wonder over to Ash, who grinned at the poison type.

"So, we gonna go for rock, paper, scissors?" The human inquired, only for Croagunk to shake his head and make a bowing action in Brock's direction. Dawn smiled as she watched this action, knowing the meaning behind it. Before Croagunk came along, Ash was responsible with stopping Brock's lovesick advances on beautiful women. Whilst Croagunk's method was brutal, Ash's was a bit more painful in a way, fuelled by the same pain he felt at the hands of a similar weapon. In her honest opinion, Dawn liked both methods equally but always felt a bit more satisfaction with Ash's way since she wasn't a Poison Jab using Pokémon. "Why thank you kindly, Croagunk. You get the next turn for free back." Nobody could ignore the mini fist pump from Brock's Pokémon, which kind of showed how the others viewed the situation.

Whilst Brock was rambling madly about the beauty of loving grass types to a terrified Gardenia, he didn't notice the figure sneak up behind him. "… Your passion to defend the noble type of grass warms my heart and… huh?"

"I think it's time you cut it out!" A mallet stuck him on the head, rendering Brock useless on the ground. The wielder of said weapon, Ash, rested it against his shoulder as he used his free arm to drag Brock away from the poor woman. "Seriously, didn't Misty and Max's tactics teach you anything?! There's two of us now so you aren't gonna get away with anything, am I clear?"

"Noooooo…"

"Is this normal for you?" Gardenia asked Dawn, who was silently cheering Ash on.

"Totally!" She smiled back. "If it weren't for Ash and Croagunk, Brock would have over twenty-five restraining orders!"

"That's just in Sinnoh alone…" Ash muttered as he walked back over, having deposited the mallet back to wherever he got it from, with Brock who had a sad puppy look about him, tail between his legs and everything.

"Cheryl told me you found the honey she was looking for, wow from an adventure to a mystery, but still…" Rage began to burn heavily in Gardenia's eyes. "HOW DARE SOMEONE USE GRASS TYPES TO COMMIT SUCH A HEINOUS CRIME! I WILL SKIN THAT PERSON ALIVE IF I FIND THEM!"

"Maybe she should burn them to death," Ash whispered to Dawn. "It would be more ironic if she did." Dawn burst out laughing whilst lightly punching her friend on the shoulder. Her laughter immediately ended when Officer Jenny stepped forwards with her Stunky, pulling someone on the end of the length of rope she had in her hand.

"Luckily for you, we've found our first suspect," Jenny admitted with a grin, completely glossing over the fact that some random woman had just admitted she would commit murder to whomever stole the Adamant Orb using a grass type. "He was the only person in the building with a Sunflora, so it's obvious that he's the only one who could have…"

"NANDO?!" Dawn screeched, rushing over to the other coordinator/trainer. "Please tell me this isn't true!"

"Trust me, dear Dawn, I would never do such a thing." Nando replied, as calm and as graceful as ever with his harp in his hands.

"So why are you here?" Brock asked curiously. Even though he knew Nando had nothing to do with the crime in question, there was still an inquisitive question of why the man would even be at a museum like this in the first place.

"I was here to study on the rich history of the Sinnoh Region when the alarm sounded," Nando replied with a smile of reassurance. "It wasn't long until we were surrounded by officers claiming that I was the culprit since I had a Sunflora with me. Poor Sunflora was scared and ran away…"

"You let it escape!" Jenny growled at him, only to be shushed by the strum of the harp.

"We are not guilty, we tell the truth…" Nando sang, Roselia trilling in by his side, tied to his trainer with more rope around the waist.

"He shouldn't give up on his day job." Ash groaned, knowing he could sing better if he tried. The key words there being 'if' and 'tried'.

"Hey, I remember you," Gardenia edged her way into the conversation. "You challenged me at my Gym the other day! If I remember you used your Roselia amazingly against my Turtwig…"

"Hold up! You're the Gym Leader?!" The three trainers who knew her from their escapades with Cheryl interrupted, which made the orange and brown-haired woman chuckle.

"I guess I never told you, I take care of the Eterna City Gym, got it?" She rubbed the back of her head nervously. "Sorry. However, I know a certain someone who would love to challenge me!"

"Yes, but we have more pressing matters right now," Brock replied, pulling Ash back by the collar before the thirteen-year-old could get a word in edgeways. "There were two thieves at the scene so, as much as it breaks my heart to say you're wrong, how can you explain that?"

"And no one with a love of grass types would do such a thing!" Gardenia added.

"Can anyone tell her that grass types make excellent thieves with moves like Vine Whip?" Ash whispered to Dawn, who giggled behind a hand.

Officer Jenny only laughed at the older trainers' feeble attempts to prove Nando's innocence. "Then how can you explain this?!" She held up a photo with a fake Sunflora running with the Adamant Orb in its hands. "This was taken from the security footage." Jenny had a smirk on her face so smug and so wide, it seemed she honestly believed that the Pokémon was an actual Sunflora.

"That Sunflora's fake!" Gardenia frowned angrily.

"Fake." Dawn nodded.

"Definitely fake." Brock added.

"It's totally fake, MS Paint would have done a better job." Everyone raised an eyebrow at Ash, who ignored their stares. In his opinion, he was just adding the honest truth.

"OBJECTION! That is fake!" Another female voice cried out from the crowd. The people parted to reveal another Jenny, except this one was in civilian clothing with a Gyarados jacket.

"And who the hell are you?" The on-duty Jenny growled. "You aren't involved in the case so you have no say!"

"I'm Diane Jenny, from Viridian City, Motorbike extraordinaire…" She looked at one of the members of the group and gasped. "Blow me down, Ash Ketchum, it's been a while."

"Three years if my brain is not lying to me," The two shook hands with remembrance of the day in question. "Thanks for driving like a lunatic to get me and Pikachu to the Pokémon Center."

"No problem," she winked at him before turning her attention to the female officer in charge. "You should look at the charm on that Sunflora's head and the fake leaves with the cut-out shapes on it before judging this poor man for your mistakes."

"Shut up! This is _MY_ investigation and I'll conduct it the way I want to!"

"Also, the item of question can power up the legendary Pokémon, Dialga, one of the Sinnoh Legendries." Diane announced, shocking the others.

"Oh yeah, the statues outside!" Dawn grinned, turning to her Kantonese friends. "Dialga can control time whilst Palkia can control space! They are known as Sinnoh's protectors!"

"Legends say that Palkia and Dialga formed the Sinnoh region long ago, and some claim that they formed the world but that may not be possible," Gardenia continued on from her. "However, many shrines and statues have been built in their honour with the Adamant Orb having been found in a shrine dedicated to Dialga."

"Look, I don't care for such nonsense!" Officer Jenny groaned, pulling her rope with her which made Nando stumble. "I'm taking the suspect into interrogation, don't do anything, ya hear?!" With that, she stormed off somewhere into the museum, taking her prisoner with her.

"Yeah, that won't last long," Ash pulled his Poké Balls from his trouser pockets. "Hey Dawn, why don't we look for that fake Sunflora with our Pokémon?"

"You read my mind! Come on out everybody!" In a bunch of flashes, Piplup, Pachirisu, Buneary, Aipom, Turtwig, Staravia and Froakie formed on the floor, with Pikachu jumping down from Ash's shoulder to join in.

"Alright, everybody search for Nando's Sunflora and the true thieves!" There was a loud round of Pokémon cheers from that sentence as they split up to look for clues.

~0~o~0~

" _Why are we in the vents?"_ Piplup groaned as he followed Pikachu and Froakie through them on their search.

" _Because everyone else is covering the ground and we need a tactical advantage!"_ Froakie snarkliy replied back with a temperamental huff. _"Honestly, haven't you been trained in tactics?!"_

" _Froakie… please stop that. Piplup is raised to do contests, not Gym battles,"_ Pikachu sighed, shaking his head. _"You may have had many trainers before now, but you are Ash's Pokémon and when he's not around… I'm in charge… got it?"_

" _Fine, got it, whatever…"_ Froakie yawned, only to hear voices up ahead. _"Wait, do you hear that?"_

" _What, I don't hear any…"_

" _SSSSHHHHHH!"_ Both Pikachu and Froakie hushed their fellow friend, hearing the sound of familiar voices and a certain missing Pokémon up ahead. Silently, they creeped up on Sunflora, scaring the living daylights out of her when she was about to use Leaf Blade on the grate.

" _Ahhh!"_ She cried out, before glaring at them three males to the best of her ability. _"Why did you scare me like that? I was about to out that Meowth as a fake Sunflora!"_

" _Seriously, I've known that from the start,"_ Pikachu answered her placing his paws on his hips. _"Listen, the best thing for us right now is to tell the trainers where Team Rocket are, as there is only one group with a talking Meowth as far as I know… and they're stripping, how spiffing."_

" _TEAM ROCKET?!"_ Piplup yelled as the thief costumes were changed for the standard white uniform that the trio were known for having.

" _Are you literally that dumb?"_ Froakie asked, not even trying to joke at the penguin Pokémon.

" _We have to attack them!"_ Either Piplup's prideful nature made him ignore the fellow water type or he was just brushing it aside because he didn't want to deal with Froakie at the moment. Of course, Sunflora added a 'yeah!' in agreement.

" _We are heavily outnumbered,"_ Pikachu frowned. _"We should get Ash at the very least, even if you don't want your pride ruined for 'Dawnie'. He knows how to deal with Team Rocket, and by deal, I mean push their buttons until they blow a fuse and then destroy them in a battle."_

" _But it's Team Rocket! They are monsters! We can handle them!"_ Piplup argued with his mind set on his course of action.

" _Urgh, whatever you say but I'm getting Ash. You coming, Froakie?"_

" _Obviously,"_ Froakie answered with a roll of his eyes. _"Regrouping and taking them on is better than facing them two on five alone. It's a better strategy and… those two are dumb."_ As he spoke, Piplup and Sunflora burst through the cover of the vents to face a disguised Team Rocket, who had stuffed the Orb up James' jacket to make him seem fat.

" _Let's just get our trainers, and quickly."_ The remaining two Pokémon rushed back through the ventilation system, hoping to get to their trainers in time to stop the idiotic trio.

~0~o~0~

Team Rocket hadn't expected the twerp herd to come running into the same room they were using as an escape method but, just before they were discovered, they realised they were in disguise and could walk their way out of it.

"A lot of museum lovers today, huh?" Jessie threw off a comment nonchalantly whilst passing the twerp trio, all of whom seemed highly un-impressed.

"We all know it's you three, just don't bother embarrassing yourselves any further." Ash spoke up just as they had passed him, causing the three to falter in their steps which allowed Nando's Sunflora to run in with Piplup and use Leaf Blade to cut through their disguises and send the Orb flying. The Adamant Orb was caught by Wobbuffet, since Meowth was more interested in his Sunflora costume. That caused Jessie and James to yell at him as a group of annoyed trainers watched on.

"Anyway," Jessie coughed. "Listen, is that a twerpy voice I hear?"

"It's whining is reaching deep into my ear, very clear."

"On the wind!"

"Past the stars!"

"In your ear!"

"Bringing chaos at a breakneck pace."

"Dashing hope, putting fear in its place."

"A rose by any other name is just as sweet."

"When everything's worse, our work is complete."

"Jessie!"

"And it's James!"

"And Meowth, now that's a name!"

"Putting the do-gooders in their place..."

"...we're Team Rocket..."

"... and we're in your face!"

"Wobbuffet!"

"Okay, that motto is different from the one I heard in Viridian…" Diane noted, which was ultimately taken as a compliment from the trio.

"Why thank you, it's our latest version," Jessie posed proudly with a huge grin. "We've grown and changed since the past."

"When she means different, she means its more atrocious than ever." Ash deadpanned, rolling his eyes at the trio's idiocy.

"The Adamant Orb is of great importance to the Sinnoh Region's history!" Gardenia stepped forwards, the fire from earlier was burning once more. "Give it back!"

"Of course we won't," James answered with a tut and a waggle of a finger. "A group of fashionable fans of Team Rocket commissioned us to pinch this delectable Orb from this museum and we can't fail our fans!"

"How can failures like you three have fans?" Dawn asked sarcastically with a rhetorical question, not looking for an answer as she knew any answer from the trio would be a stupid one. "No, don't answer. Come on you guys, don't let them get away!" With her command, the combination of her and Ash's Pokémon surrounded the bumbling thieves in a circle, threatening to attack if they tried to escape.

"Be careful you two!" Brock warned his younger friends. "You can't attack them in case you damage the Adamant Orb!"

"T-t-t-that's right!" Meowth grinned at those words. "There is no way your little twerpy Pokémon can attack us right now!"

"Wanna bet?" Ash knew about Froakie's frubbles from the Pokédex info and the battle he had with Dawn a few days earlier, knowing that they could be instantly used to restrain them if needed.

"We could really use Eterna's Officer Jenny right now…" Diane expressed her thoughts out loud, not knowing about a part of Froakie's move pool due to never seeing the Pokémon before.

"You called?" Everyone's heads turned when the aforementioned policewoman stepped in with her Stunky by her side. "Look, I'm sorry I reacted the way I did, let me make it up to you by helping you catch the real crooks."

"Fine by me." Diane grinned as the two Jenny's turned on the Team Rocket trio.

"No matter what you do, you'll be left with Adamant Orb dust!" Jessie exclaimed, with James and Meowth nodding in agreement with her words.

"We won't, Stunky! Ten-hut!" Like earlier, Stunky went into a handstand position before releasing an obnoxious smelling gas from its… behind. Hands immediately flung themselves onto noses to protect the people from smelling whatever it was that Stunky had produced.

"That's the worst thing I've smelt in forever!" James groaned.

"It smells worse than you!" Meowth added clutching at a non-existent nose.

"I'm going to throw my hands up in disgust!" Jessie remarked, which made the Adamant Orb fly up into the air. Immediately, the trainers' Pokémon rushed in to grab it, only to be beaten by a certain Gym Leader.

"Turtwig, come on out and use Leaf Storm to save the Orb!" Gardenia instructed her precious Pokémon who created a leaf tornado which safely brought the Adamant Orb into Gardenia's hands.

"Great, now that leaves one thing left to do." Diane and the other Officer Jenny walked slowly towards the true criminals, who like the wusses they were, turned on their tails and ran away.

"I've had enough of this stench, Staravia use Gust!" A few wing flaps later, the room was breathable again, meaning that they could chase after the trio who, as it seemed, had got away by using the stench as their cover through an army of police officers. Needless to say, Officer Jenny was not impressed and she spent the rest of the day yelling at her men for not going above and beyond the call of duty to arrest the culprits. When she wasn't yelling at her staff, she was apologising to Nando for falsely imprisoning him in an interrogation room for a crime he didn't commit.

"It is no problem, really," he replied as calm and as collected as ever. "I am just glad the Adamant Orb has been safely recovered. Eterna City is a favourite of mine, where the past and present connect with beautiful harmony."

"So, is the legend behind these beasts' real, or not?" Ash asked with mild curiosity. Whilst he did like the idea behind legends in the past, meeting every legendary from every region kind of took the edge and enthralment away from a person, replacing it with death and destruction – or at least injury.

"Long ago," Nando began to tell the tale. "In the beginning, there was only a churning turmoil of chaos. From its centre, came the Original One. The Original one went on to create two beings, time began to spin, space began to expand. From there, the Original One went on to create three more beings. Matter was born from communion between the first two and spirit was born from communion between the second three. Our world was born and the Original One fell into slumber, thus the legend of the creation ends."

"I… don't get it." Dawn blanked, sharing nods of agreement. It was an old legend and not all legends were true but still, Dialga and Palkia must have existed for statues and documented pictures of them to exist, so there had to be a reason for why they existed in the first place.

"Don't worry about it, Dawn," Nando replied with a smile. "It is bright young youths like yourself who will understand soon enough, just like how you taught me before."

"I guess I'd better apologise," Gardenia interrupted, placing a hand on Ash's shoulder. "You must have come to the museum because the Gym was closed."

"Not exactly," Brock answered her on behalf of the group. "Dawn found out there was a Coordinator Exhibit on and dragged us there herself. We were just leaving when the alarm went off."

"Well, either way, get ready cause I look forwards to our match tomorrow."

"Me too, and I'm gonna do my best to beat you for my second badge!" Ash grinned with Pikachu cheering from his shoulder.

"That still leaves the question of who commissioned Team Rocket to steal the Adamant Orb," Diane suddenly said with her arms crossed. "Without that question solved then the case is still open."

"Hold on, could it have been other Team Rocket members?" Brock put his ideas forwards, which earnt a nod from Eterna's Officer Jenny.

"Or maybe a Pokémon Hunter?"

"Or maybe…" Diane trailed off for a moment, turning to the sky with narrowed eyes. "Maybe it was someone far worse."

~0~o~0~

As they spoke, above the clouds with a backdrop of Mt. Coronet, a black helicopter with a golden G on the side flew by.

"Well those three were good for absolutely nothing." A male with a teal green bowl cut and a space themed uniform muttered out loud with a snarky tone.

"We'll get the Adamant orb next time, Sir." The woman next to him who was helping him fly the craft – and was wearing a nearly identical uniform minus the skirt – turned her head back to a man with blue hair that pointed upwards like devil horns. One of his legs was crossed over the other and his arms were folded. He huffed in response and the helicopter continued to fly into the direction of the sunset leaving ominously without a second glance.


	4. A Force to be Reckoned with

**Hi everybody! Sorry I'm late but, good news! The Gym battle chapter is done! YAY! Seriously guys, this thing has killed me with the plans for it... especially since Bulbapedia is down and I CAN'T GET GARDENIA'S POKEMON'S MOVESET WITHOUT WATCHING THE ENTIRE EPISODE ON YOUTUBE! Trust me, with the dub, it was a bad experience. WHY TPCI, WHY?!**

 **Anyway, dub hatred over (Seriously, Ash sounds like a girl in the beginning of Sinnoh), we've reached over 100 alerts already and I can't believe it! You guys are the reason why and I thank you so much. Luckily, the next chapter won't be so hard for me to write, especially since it will be an original chapter... you will find out what that means when it comes out. For now, review answering time!**

 **Batguy 2000: Am I about to jinx that lack of rush with the Gym battle? Well, as for the characters I know that Ash would have to use personal experience to test out an ability, Dawn's a newbie so she's gonna be a bit out of the loop for a bit, and Brocko's Brocko, you should never change this man, he is fine the way he is. I'm not a shipper and thus, cannot write shipping stories. Ash won't be in a relationship AT ALL in the series. There may be some hints (From both genders) but he will either be oblivious or try to get out of that situation. Trust me, more Pokemon interactions on the way! Thank you!**

 **Amourshiper35: It happened in the DP series so I couldn't not, plus for the future, it's Team Galactic. Also, you'll have to read to find out.**

 **Yami-chan and Unrealistic: This review made my day when I read it. I love the silly antics and always will do! There will be serious moments but there will always be some comedy around the corner to make you smile, that's why I love the DP series so much. I WON AT SOMETHING, WOOOOO! (Yeah, big bro Brocko is the best and, to be honest, it had to happen at some point. Nobody almost dies about four times and doesn't contemplate on it.)**

 **1995hzq: Yep, this is an AU which ties into Sinnoh's aura theme! You'll have to wait for more chapters for that answer! Thanks, I will!**

 **twilight sparkle: Ash and Dawn gonna be besties up in here, just like in the anime! No, no amourshipping, no any shipping actually. I can't write them for any kind of confectionary so sorry about that. Thank you and thanks for supporting!**

 **Nerdy McNerdface: I made someone cry with laughter... one more check off of my comedy list... just one more thing to go. Thanks Nerds, you write comedy well too. Well no duh, DP TRio be best TRio! I'm glad it is and I'm happy I made you cry with laughter.**

 **thor94: Well... he's learnt from his experiences and is older so I guess he would be... plus he's used to Team Rocket's BS more than anybody else I know so there's that as well.**

 **PhotonDragon16: Maybe, maybe not... you'll have to wait and see!**

 **TraceOfSilver: Next chapter holds the truth, be patient and you will find out.**

 **KHLegacy: Well we have Professor Sycamore and Froakie so kinda? Mostly Sinnoh based though.**

 **That's everyone! Thank you all for reading and I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

 **A Force to be Reckoned with**

Today was finally the day, the day of the second Gym battle challenge. Already the combatants were in place, Gardenia standing proudly in the Gym Leader's box whilst Ash was in the challenger's with his strategies running through his brain. His first battle with Gardenia had been a wipe out, her Turtwig taking both Staravia and his own Turtwig out with Cherubi being used to assess his Pokémon beforehand. She was a sly trainer with cunning strategies, but he had been training since then and also had his secret weapon in the form of Froakie. Whilst he was a water type, there was something about the Pokémon that had made Ash dead set on using Froakie in the match today. Pikachu had joined Brock and Dawn in the stands, meaning he could focus entirely on the battle.

A woman with circular glasses, black pigtailed hair and a purple tracksuit took her space at the side of the field, her own Pokémon – a Nuzleaf – copying her every movement. "The battle between the Gym Leader Gardenia and the challenger Ash is about to begin. Both sides will use three Pokémon each but only the challenger will be allowed to substitute. Are those rules clear?"

"Of course!" Gardenia confirmed first out of the two battlers, Ash following her seconds later.

"Crystal."

"Alright then, send out your first Pokémon!" The woman, who was named Yoko, instructed.

"Cherubi, let's go!"

"Turtwig, I choose you!" Both Pokémon formed in front of their trainers with the pink cherry shaped Pokémon smirking as the bright sunlight that shone down form the open roof of the gym powered up her ability of Chlorophyll which increased speed during intense sun. Gardenia knew this as well, hiding her grin as she allowed her challenger to get the first attack. "As the challenger, you get the first move!" She said, hiding her plan behind a poker face.

"Turtwig, use Tackle!" Ash called out, which his grass type followed immediately, pushing himself forwards in a run to knock Cherubi with a headbutt. Just as he was about to land the hit, Gardenia gave her first instruction.

"Dodge!" Using Chlorophyll, Cherubi almost vanished as it moved away from the charging Turtwig, who has skidded to a stop.

"Razor Leaf!"

"Cherubi, use the sun! Solar Beam!" As the leaves thrown from Turtwig's head flew towards it, Cherubi's leaves began to glow with the energy it was creating from the sunlight before a beam of pure light burst forth towards the opposite Pokémon. The Solar Beam burnt through the sharp flying leaves and, if he hadn't dodged when he did, would have hit Turtwig with the same amount of power.

Ash frowned in thought, having researched Cherubi before he came into the fight. If Cherubi did have Chlorophyll like he believed it would – normal Cherubi weren't as fast as this one was – then that meant the sun was strong enough to mimic the move Sunny Day, which allowed Solar Beam to be used constantly instead of being charged up with the move working after a set amount of time. "Turtwig, try Razor Leaf once more."

"Solar Beam!" Gardenia shouted, proving his thoughts to be true. Just like before, the Solar Beam burnt the leaves but, this time, managed to land a hit on Turtwig who was burnt and hurt by the strength of the attack. Gardenia had a feeling she knew what was about to happen, Ash would continue to fight until Turtwig passed out, just like last time. She had this round in the bag and…

"I see, you used the sunlight to your advantage right, cut down Solar Beam's charging time to nothing…" Her steely nerves faltered when the boy across from her burst into a gleeful smile. "I guess we'll have to use it too. Turtwig, Synthesis!" Turtwig's body glowed as he too took in the sun's light, healing his wounds and restoring his health. Before Gardenia could call out another attack, Ash spoke up once more. "Now, return!" He held out Turtwig's Poké Ball as the grass type disappeared under the red beam to safety.

"Clever, very clever," Gardenia clapped her hands together with a genuine smile on her face. "Synthesis restores more health the brighter the sun is. You used my strategy to heal yourself up before a switch… no matter, I'll still win."

"Oh yeah? Staravia! You're up!" The grey and white bird majestically swooped from above when she was called out, circling once happily around her trainer before she took her place on the battlefield.

"A type advantage doesn't automatically mean a win. Cherubi, Solar Beam!" The Gym Leader ordered, with Cherubi being able to charge up the powerful move automatically.

"Before it can fire, use Double Team!" Ash told Staravia, who nodded and multiple copies of herself appeared on the battlefield. All the copies took to the sky, criss-crossing as they flew around which made Cherubi falter in the fact it now didn't know where its target was.

"Use the beam to cancel out the copies and hit the real Staravia with it!" Gardenia told her grass type, who nodded and unleashed grass type hell on its opponent. One by one, the beam cut through the flying copies until only one remained and she was hit on the side, crying as she began to fall before stabilising herself.

"Are you okay?" Staravia nodded at her trainer, who breathed a sigh of relief. "Alright then, Wing Attack!" She flew at speed towards Cherubi, who dodged with ease.

"Solar Beam, once more!" Gardenia instructed with a grin, only to tip her head in confusion as the attack wasn't charging up like it was moments earlier. She looked up, groaning as the clouds had started to cloud up the sun meaning that both Solar Beam and Chlorophyll were out of the question. "You really can't trust the weather then. No pressure, I can just use another move. Cherubi, Magical Leaf!" Magical Leaf was a move that never missed, no dodging could stop it from landing unless a Protect was used or the attack had to go a long distance.

"Staravia, fly up!" Ash commanded with a plan in mind. The flying type flew through the open roof with pink, blue and purple glowing leaves following her up as high as she dared to go. As Staravia became naught but a blurry shape, the leaves disintegrated into nothing but pretty sparkles showing that the target was too far away to hit.

"Great!" Dawn cheered from the stands, Pikachu and Piplup joining her in her rejoice. "Now Ash can strike!"

"No, I don't think he will," Brock responded to her words, getting two looks of confusion and one sly nod in agreement from Pikachu. "Ash has a plan that involves using Gardenia's strategy against her, it's just his style and I have an idea what he's aiming for."

Just as Brock has said, Ash had told Staravia to fly back slowly and it became pretty clear as to why he said that. As well as flying slowly, Staravia was using Wing Attack which helped intensify the light heading in the direction of the battlefield, blinding Cherubi.

"Okay, combine Quick Attack and Aerial Ace!" The flying type was faster than ever, sending Cherubi soaring into the air upon contact. "Finish it with Wing Attack!" With a trill, Staravia slammed her white, glowing wings into the grass type's back which slam dunked it into the ground, knocking it out.

"Cherubi is unable to battle, Staravia wins!" Yoko announced as Gardenia recalled her first Pokémon of the battle.

"Hmm… it seems like we won't be repeating our last battle, you've prepared well for today, but are you prepared for this? Turtwig!" She released her second Pokémon, one the others knew all too well. Gardenia's Turtwig, or as Ash called it 'Speedy Gonzalez', looked just as confident as its predecessor. "You get the first move again."

"Aerial Ace!"

"Leech Seed!" Gardenia's Turtwig fired a seed from the top of its head towards Staravia, who was flying at speed towards it. The seed latched onto Staravia's head, wrapping vines around her body but not before she managed to hit the Turtwig back towards its trainer. Energy was sapped from her body, causing the flying type to cry out in pain from being drained whilst Turtwig healed itself from her energy.

"Wing Attack!"

"Tackle!" With the vines wrapped around her wings, Staravia found it hard to start up the attack which gave Turtwig the chance to hit her in the stomach with its head, sending her careering off into a nearby tree trunk which caused her to faint.

"Staravia is unable to battle, Turtwig wins!" Ash recalled his flying type as Yoko spoke, praising her silently as Gardenia's Turtwig gloated over its win with its trainer smirking at him. He wasn't out of the battle yet, he still had two Pokémon yet.

"You've probably been waiting for this," he smiled sweetly at Gardenia, as if butter couldn't melt in his mouth. "Turtwig, I choose you!" The two Turtwig glared each other down, staring as if to determine the winner just out of who glared the best.

"Now you're talking!" Gardenia grinned, placing her hands on her hips. "I think we've both been waiting for this rematch! Turtwig use Tackle!" Gardenia's Turtwig took off, using its high speed to its advantage. Ash knew he couldn't dodge, but had a better plan.

"Turtwig, Withdraw!" A purple shell encased Ash's Turtwig for a second before a red glow surrounded it. When Gardenia's Turtwig knocked into the other, Ash's barely flinched. "Follow it up with Bite!" That worked as Gardenia's Turtwig cried out in pain from being bitten on the leg before it was thrown back towards its trainer.

"Wait, how didn't Gardenia's Turtwig cause more damage?" Dawn asked Brock from the stands, who was smiling.

"It's obvious that her Turtwig specialises in speed, Ash's is bulkier and defence based," he explained to her. "Using Withdraw to boost Turtwig's already high defence meant that Tackle wouldn't do as much as it could have done."

"Oh, I get it!" She smiled back. "That means Gardenia's Turtwig is gonna have to work hard to beat Ash's Turtwig!"

"With Leech Seed, not really, but Ash still has Synthesis on his side," Brock replied, returning his attention to the field as two sets of Razor Leaf's had just cancelled each other out, leading to Ash's Turtwig managing to Tackle Gardenia's into a tree trunk. "Gardenia is only biding her time before she uses Leech Seed as an ending tactic and Ash had better be ready for it."

As if Gardenia had heard him, she launched into her final phase of the round. "Leech Seed!"

"Turtwig, dodge!" Ash's Turtwig was too slow, the seed latched onto him just like it did with Staravia, covering him in vines that drained his energy. Memories of the earlier battle played through his mind with the past Leech Seed knocking him out almost instantly. That wasn't going to happen again, no way was it going to happen under his watch. Turtwig growled as he forced himself back onto his feet, gritting his teeth as energy drained from his limbs and back towards his opponent in a small green ball. "Let's end this, Tackle!"

"You use Tackle too!" Gardenia yelled as the two grass types rushed towards each other, meeting in the middle of the field. They both hit each other but continued on, turning back to face each other once they had skidded to a halt. Staring the other down, the two Turtwig dared their opponent to fall before them that was, until one gave in. Gardenia's Turtwig's legs gave way, leaving it to collapse on the floor.

"Gardenia's Turtwig is unable to battle, Ash's Turtwig is the winner!" Yoko announced with, once again, her Nuzleaf copying her. Gardenia sighed as she recalled her Turtwig, holding its Poké Ball tenderly whilst praising it for its effort.

"You really have changed since our last battle," she told her opponent. "But I didn't use this Pokémon against you then. Roserade, to the field!" In front of her formed a green caped Pokémon with white hair, a mask and two roses for hands, one red with the other being blue. Roserade was a grass and poison type, meaning it had an advantage over Turtwig already unless it didn't know any poison type moves. However, even with that scenario in mind, grass type moves weren't effective against it which wasn't helpful.

"Okay, Turtwig use Bite!" Ash instructed, which Turtwig did as he began to run towards the other Pokémon.

Gardenia looked up through the roof, smiling as the clouds from earlier had completely passed and that meant she could use the sun once more to her advantage. "Roserade, use Weather Ball!" The sun shone down on Roserade as a fiery ball formed between its roses. Once the orb had fully formed, it threw the fire at Turtwig who couldn't dodge due to the fact he was too close to the other grass type and it hit him dead on.

Turtwig flew back to his trainer's side of the field with swirls in his eyes, showing he had been knocked out from the attack.

"Turtwig is unable to battle, Roserade wins!" Yoko pipped up once more, signalling Turtwig's return to his Poké Ball.

"You did amazingly out there, well done," Ash muttered loud enough so that his Pokémon could hear him, which was confirmed by a slight shake of the Poké Ball itself. "So Roserade was your secret weapon of sorts?"

"Yes, works amazingly against other grass type users, bug types and ice types, that's two weaknesses already accounted for." She paused as she talked, realising why he had asked such a question. "Let me guess, you have a secret weapon of your own."

"Gardenia, I'm shocked," Ash mockingly gasped in horror before he grinned at her. "I thought you knew me better than that. Froakie, it's your time to shine!" Gardenia's eyes narrowed as the blue frog from earlier landed in front of his trainer. She had never seen such a Pokémon, but knew it wasn't a shiny due to the lack of sparkles, meaning it was either an ice type or a water type due to its colouring. At least, that's what she deduced.

"Are you using a water type against my grass type?" She inquired with a snarky edge to her words, believing silently that she may have this round in the bag.

"And we have a hypocrite over here," the thirteen-year-old crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. "Wasn't it you that recently said, and I quote, 'A type advantage doesn't automatically mean a win.', so I think you can judge Froakie after we've shown you what we can do, is that okay?" Gardenia frowned at his tone of voice but nodded, pushing her thoughts about the unusual Pokémon to the back of her mind for now.

"Roserade, let's start off with Magical Leaf!" The Gym Leader commanded, knowing that it would definitely hit as her opposition couldn't fly away. Leaves surrounded in multicoloured auras flew towards Froakie, who remained calm and didn't react to them much at all.

"Froakie, counter with Bubble!" Ash instructed, leading his water type to rear his head back and shoot a spray of bubbles from his mouth. Each leaf was countered by a bubble, the moves cancelling each other out as they hit. "Okay, follow up with Quick Attack!" Froakie rocketed forwards with a white glow trailing behind him as he dashed across the field to hit Roserade directly in its middle which caused it to stumble.

"I see what you mean," Gardenia was smirking, which wasn't exactly a good thing. "But you've left yourself open for an attack. Magical Leaf, once more!" Roserade conjured more leaves up, sending them in Froakie's direction causing a direct hit which, with it, came a small explosion. As the dust cleared, Gardenia gasped in shock to see Froakie was standing and not just standing, but looked relatively unharmed. "But how?!"

"One word," Ash told her, sharing a nod with a smiling Froakie. "Protean."

"So that's what he was doing last night!" Brock understood why Ash had asked Froakie to use all of his moves against his other team members and for vice versa following one of Froakie's non-water type attacks. "He was making sure Protean was working so he could use it today!"

"Brock, what's Protean?" Dawn looked up at her older friend, who was grinning like the Glameow that got the cream.

"Protean is Froakie's hidden ability," he explained for her. "Just like other water type starters, Froakie has Torrent as his natural ability. However, some Pokémon can unlock their hidden abilities through parents or through tough training. Protean, as an ability, can change a Pokémon's type to the move they are about to use for extra damage!"

"That means… if I'm right, Froakie's a normal type now?" She thought over Quick Attack's typing, only to smile when a nod told her that she had got it right. "Grass type moves would give normal damage but Weather Ball would be effective too if it hit."

"I know, which is why Froakie's speed is key in this battle if Ash wants to win."

"Interesting, interesting indeed," Gardenia stretched her arm out, extending her hand. "Roserade, use Flash!" A blinding white light shone from Roserade's flowers, causing everyone in the room to look away from them. Froakie had managed to shut his eyes just before he was blinded, the psychedelic coloured spots in his vision refused to fade however.

"Nice try, Froakie use Quick Attack once more!"

"Grass Knot!" Froakie didn't see the line of knotted grasses due to the speed he was going at, catching his foot in one of them which caused him to fall over. "Follow up with Magical Leaf!" The glowing leaves threw Froakie into the air and back towards his trainer.

"Are you okay, Froakie?" Ash asked as his newest team member pushed himself up shakily. Froakie couldn't take any more damage. Three hits one after another wasn't good for any Pokémon, let alone a first stage evolution against a third stage. Froakie nodded, getting into a defensive stance. There was only one way the two of them could take the Roserade out now and they were hoping Gardenia would take the bait.

"Still standing, huh?" Gardenia noticed Froakie's weary form and knew one hit would be all that was needed. "Let's see if fire damages you normally, just like grass types do. Roserade, Weather Ball!" The grass type charged the fiery orb between its hands just like it did against Turtwig. This time, Ash had a plan to counter it. As the orb was flung at Froakie, Ash spoke up loudly.

"Froakie, use Bubble on your hand and knock it back at them!" Froakie nodded as the others gasped at the command, blowing one bubble that turned his typing back to water and damped his hand. With that done, he hopped as fast as he could over to the raging inferno ball and used that hand to smack it back at Roserade with next to no pain.

"Roserade, dodge!" Gardenia cried, only for it to be too late as the Weather Ball came back to haunt her, hitting Roserade dead on. Her grass type was hidden in a cloud of dust for a moment before its fallen figure was apparent even to those in the stands. Roserade had been knocked out.

"Roserade is unable to battle, Froakie is the winner meaning that the match goes to the challenger, Ash!" Yoko yelled, raising her arm in the direction of the left side of the field as her Nuzleaf copied her actions. Dawn, Pikachu and Piplup jumped up cheering from the stands at the result as Brock shook his head with a smile. Trust Ash to win a Gym Battle whilst relying on his newest team member's ability. According to the update from Professor Sycamore, Froakie had Protean which was an ability that changed a Pokémon's type depending on the moves that it used and, considering Froakie was faster than Roserade, he was able to defeat her grass type advantage.

Ash had run out onto the field, having picked a tired – yet proud – water type off of the battlefield. "You were amazing out there, Froakie. I am so glad you decided to join our team." As his cheeks darkened with a purple hue, Froakie was pulled up into a hug he couldn't help but melt into. This teenager was definitely the best trainer he had ever battled under.

"Phew, what an intensive match!" Gardenia had recalled her Roserade, walking over to her opponent with Yoko by her side – Brock and Dawn had come down from the stands. "I guess you can't judge a Pokémon you know nothing about by its typing, right?"

"Right," Ash was still holding Froakie as Pikachu jumped back up to his perch on his shoulder, but he had finished the hug so that his Pokémon could receive the praise he deserved, the praise they all deserved. Freeing a hand, he released Turtwig and Staravia who were both beaming with joy at the win. "Turtwig, Staravia and Froakie were amazing…"

"You shouldn't sell yourself short," The Gym Leader interrupted, a bit shocked that a winning trainer wasn't bragging about _their_ win and giving their Pokémon all the credit. "I highly doubt they would have worked as efficiently without your strategies and training." All three Pokémon agreed with her, joining in with the laughter as their trainer blushed at the praise.

"Thank you…"

"Anyway, it is my pleasure in handing over the Forest Badge, the sign you've beaten me in a Gym Battle!" Gardenia turned to Yoko, who was holding a tray with the coloured piece of metal. She picked it up and placed it in the boy's gloved palm. "Congratulations."

"Alright, I got the Forest Badge!" Turtwig and Staravia jumped into the air, posing as they voiced their excitement. Froakie stared at them, wondering why they did such a thing until he released it was customary as Pikachu joined in. From his place in Ash's arm, he raised a hand up towards the sky and cheered, cheered for a future of battles to come.


	5. Surprising Encounters

**Sorry for the delay! Stuff happened and all.**

 **Anyway, as it is the promised chapter 5, I have created a poll asking whether or not you guys want the DP Pokemon movies to be a part of the story or to be separate stories with around 5-10 chapters dependent on Movie length and depth. You can find that on my profile page so yeah, do that if you want. Also, this chapter marks the day in which Ash's BOA team will be known. Apart from Chimchar, we have one slot to fill and it will be filled in this chapter, don't you worry.**

 **Anyway, review answering time!**

 **AlphaDD: Well, I kinda didn't know Ash's Staraptor in the anime was a dude until after I had written the chapter. I read this fic with Staraptor in it where she was a female but I guess not. Anyway, female Staravia, sorry about that. Aww, thank you, I'm glad you liked how I wrote the battle!**

 **Batguy2000: I'm happy I delivered in the battle and come on, the badge pose is Ash through and through, it wouldn't be him without one in there after a tough Gym Battle! Froakie will get used to it, eventually. Paul will be showing up soon so we will get the reaction you may want to see oh, and for Froakie, it will be a traumatic memory of the past seeing Paul's style, trust me.**

 **Marcellasnow231: Froakie's new to the whole Gym system, so he would be confused. I agree, I like the way you think and more Piplup VS Froakie will be along the way in sense of comedic affect.**

 **AmuraRAwesome: Thank you for your kind words!**

 **Amourshiper35: They do have a connection, don't they? Yeah, I think the Forest Badge was deserved after their battle.**

 **twilight sparkle: Glad to make someone happy with the no shipping thing. The reason I put my Author's Note at the beginning is so that people won't skip it since many people would just read the story and leave without realising I've answered their review or put something urgent down like a poll deciding how the movies are going to run. It's just the way I have always done it and it would be hard to change my pattern. Thanks for reviewing!**

 **Yami-chan and Unrealistic: And don't we know it? Ash is all about turning a type disadvantage into a advantage. It's his style and kinda iconic with his character so I had to, I just had to.**

 **Infernal Fox: Looking at your story update list, I would be in the right to say hypocrite. Some of my other stories aren't being updated because I have lost motivation on them, as many authors on this site have done before me. Look, if you have nothing positive or negative to say about the story then please don't review. It wastes your time typing it and my time replying to it when you aren't even looking at the story but judging it based on MY motivation on updating a series I love writing for over lost motivation stories. Please don't do this again or I will block you and I don't want to do that... that or report you either.**

 **NinjaFang 1331: Bond Phenomenon's theory of Aura relativity is by Nerdy McNerdface, I take no credit in making it, thank them for that, they have their own stories on this site. Anyway, thank you for your kind words.**

 **Mateusz: Thank you, the DP series/Sinnoh Arc has always been my favourite and I actually liked Froakie and the whole Bond Phenomenon thing from XYZ so wanted to merge it together with additional Aura knowledge and lore building to make an AU. Hmm, well I am not using every episode in the arc for batum. I am changing and taking out episodes as I want to spruce things up a bit. Plus, as you can see below, I am writing my own chapters/episodes that are completely different than from what the arc gave us. Froakie won't be the only one with development. Brock and Dawn will be getting more, so will their Pokemon and so will Azelf, Mespirit and Uxie, plus Hunter J will be having more appearances than usual and the Keystone Pops Episode will end on quite the cliffhanger... but I have to keep some of my secrets. I hope you enjoy what I have in store for this Au. :)**

 **With that over, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

 **Surprising Encounters**

Considering that every need the group had to stay in Eterna was gone, they left the Pokémon Center they were staying at to head on down to Hearthome City for Dawn's next contest. The said girl was blabbering her head off about plans for her performances whilst her male companions were walking behind her sharing a smile over her enthusiasm, something Ash could relate to with his Gym Battle. She felt, at that moment in time, that nothing could stop her in her path to Hearthome…

…Except for the fact the only way to get to Hearthome was a Cycling Road and the bicycle shop was closed for the weekend meaning the group were stuck in Eterna for two more days at least.

Sure, there was a long road underneath the Cycling Road that would lead to the same place as the bike only way, but it would take three days to traverse due to the fact it was filled with hostile wild Pokémon that would attack and huge rocks that blocked the way. Oh, and the lake that had a ferry that only arrived once a day at a set time due to a lack of people using the route, meaning it was easier to wait for the shop to open on Monday. That left two days for Dawn to get extra training in, or one day and the first spent looking through a cave for rare Pokémon.

At the start of the long walking path under the road was a cave entrance which was rumoured to have the pre-evolution of a pseudo legendary being found in its area as a 'hidden floor' for the cave. Of course, it would be awesome if one of the team caught a rare Pokémon but the trip was also for training as a trainer's worst enemy, Zubat, was known to swoop down on trainers who were searching for the rarer finds. The three would be happy to leave the cave without any bites about their persons, thank you very much.

"So, what does your guide say about the place?" Dawn asked the eldest trainer, turning her head to face him as he flipped through the pages of his book.

"Well the cave is known as Wayward Cave and we're entering through the supposed 'hidden entrance' as obscured by the Cycling Road," Brock replied, not looking up from the pages as he walked. "However, the Zubat encounter rate seems slightly low, with Geodude are more available, Bronzor's as well."

"What about that pre-evolution?" Ash asked, his hands behind his head with his elbows pointed out at the sides, minding Pikachu from on his shoulder.

"Hmm… they don't show up all that much but they seem to be more common than Zubat, making it easier for us then." He put the guidebook back into his backpack as Piplup cheered from Dawn's arms, causing the girl to frown in worry.

"Urgh… I really should be training for my contest but the sound of this rare Pokémon really sounds exciting," she began to ponder her options, wondering what would be the best thing for her to do when a hand placed itself gently on her shoulder.

"Dawn, you've been training non-stop for a few days now since I gave you Aipom," Ash gave her a reassuring smile. "I'm sure one day of not practising won't kill you, and your Pokémon can enjoy the rest before you put them back on track tomorrow."

Dawn looked down at her Piplup, who nodded back at her, which in turn made her grin at her friends happily. "Okay, _one_ day of break won't kill me."

"Great," Brock pointed ahead to curling sloped back cut into the side of a cliff face. "We have to follow that path which leads to the cave entrance. It only takes around ten minutes to get down it so we don't have to worry about any breaks along the way…" He secretly shot a glance at Dawn, who still wasn't entirely used to travelling around a region. When Ash and Pikachu began sniggering behind their palms, Dawn glared between the males with furrowed eyebrows.

"What…" When she didn't get an answer, she huffed and stomped her foot with Piplup pouting in her arms. "What's so funny?!"

"Nothing," Ash snorted as he passed her, having given up on hiding his humoured outlook at Brock's action. "Nothing that's too important. Unlike Brock, I would rather I don't suffer the female fist of fury!" He dashed off down the path after that, with the others right behind him for various reasons. Brock wanted to strangle his friend of three years whilst Dawn wanted to punch Brock's head in. Needless to suffice, neither male wanted to be caught in the chase so ran as fast as their legs could carry them.

~0~o~0~

Thanks to the run down the path, it took only a mere five minutes to reach the cave's entrance. Of course, the trainers needed to take a breather before entering the cave but that was only because they had been running like idiots after each other. Once regaining the air they needed to have a civil conversation, the three trainers made a last-minute check before they entered the cave, which was surprisingly light considering it was underground.

"So, what do we need to do to get this Pokémon to come to us?" Dawn inquired, Piplup having had jumped out of her hands to walk on the ground beside Pikachu.

"Making noise is one of the best options since Pokémon are naturally curious," Brock told her, slowing his walking pace to a stop. "Our voices will probably get a few reactions, especially since we're humans."

"Maybe shouting will get them to come quicker!" Believing that her thought process had given her an amazing answer to their dilemma, she began to raise her voice. "Hey, rare Pokémon! We'd like to meet you so come out to say hi… please!" Piplup copied her actions from the floor, ignoring Pikachu's deadpan expression that was sent directly towards him.

"Dawn, it doesn't work like that…" Ash groaned, slapping his gloved hand against his face.

"No, just throw Ash into the bowls of the cave and shiny legendries will be lapping at your feet by this evening." Brock said jokingly, only to realise that he shouldn't have done that. Dawn's eyes sparkled as she invaded his personal space whilst Ash sent him a murderous glare with his mallet spinning around in between rests against his shoulder. Yeah, definitely shouldn't have said that.

"Really, you mean it?" The eleven-year-old smiled sweetly, imagining having a rare and powerful Pokémon perform alongside her in her contests. "No joke?!"

"Well…" He never got to finish his sentence as Dawn had already turned around and was pushing the other boy deeper into the cave with a face that said 'determination' across every feature.

"Come on then, why didn't you say this earlier?" She continued to push Ash, who was dragging his heels into the mud-covered floor and thus was making her job harder. "I wanna see this for myself."

Having had enough, Ash's hot-headed side decided to show itself to stop Dawn from doing anything else. "Would you stop doing that?! Brock's exaggerating, it's normally a few legendries a region and none of them have been shiny at all! Huh…" His over excessive yelling had attracted a trainer's worse nightmare when inside a cave, a horde of the dreaded Zubat. "Oh great, just what we needed."

Dramatically multiplying in numbers, the poison bats began using attacks randomly at the invading human force, most of them missing thanks to a Thunderbolt from Pikachu or a Bubble from Piplup. Attacks flew through the air, hitting the wall of the cave, causing rocks from it to wriggle and crack from their positions up high, threatening to fall. Considering the fact that the Zubat would be around for a while, the trainers made a mad dash for the exit with hopes of coming back later. Just as they were about to leave, a stray Supersonic hit the rocks over their heads, causing them to loosen just enough to begin falling down on the three. With screaming dives, the dust rose from the ground as rock after rock affectively blocked the only way into the lowest level of the Wayward Cave.

Brock groaned as he pushed himself up from his lying position on the floor. Sure, his body didn't like suddenly being flung onto a rocky, solid ground but it was better than being crushed. Getting onto his knees, he was able to crawl over to Dawn, who was in the same state as he was, bruises and all. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine…" She winced as she spoke, only to gasp when she realised her legs were squishing Piplup underneath them. "Sorry Piplup, I didn't know you were there!" Piplup pouted at the thought of being forgotten, at the very least by his own trainer too. He huffed and raged at her with fire burning eyes of anger, however his rant was only one sided with the understanding of what was being said. "I have no idea what you're saying Piplup but if any of it is rude then I'm restricting your poffin allowance." The grovelling that followed, however, was easily understandable.

"That's great, hey…" Brock trailed off as he realised that there were only two of them outside with the entrance blocked off by the fallen rocks.

"Please don't tell me…" Dawn's hands covered her mouth as her irises shrunk at the horror of the situation they could currently be stuck in. The eldest trainer acted first, rushing towards the wall blocking them from the cave. He instantly began looking for a gap between the rocks that could allow him to see what was going on inside. Peering though, he found it hard to restrain the worry of seeing two downed figures inside, not moving a muscle.

"Ash! Can you hear me?!" Brock yelled as loudly as he could, hoping the sound of his voice could get through the tiny gaps of the recently made block. "Say something, anything!" Of course, he gained no response, which brought his fears sky high. The falling rocks could have hit the two as they tried to escape the Zubat, meaning there was a battle for life and death beginning at that very moment.

"What do we do, Brock? What do we do?!" Dawn cried out, freaking out at the idea that her friend could be injured and trapped inside of a cave with no way of getting him out.

"We need to remain calm and… wait," he peered back into the hole, watching as a silhouette of some kind of Pokémon neared Ash and Pikachu's still forms. The darkened figure looked between the two of them, hand to an excessively large jaw as a sort of thinking posture, before it grabbed the two and began to drag them away from the entrance. "No! Let them go!"

"What's going on?" Dawn's brain was on overdrive, thinking up all sorts of horrible scenarios that could be happening right now.

"Something's dragging them deeper into the cave," Brock explained, gritting his teeth together as he did so. "Either it wants to help or they're going to end up as lunch, but either way, both Pikachu and Ash seem to be out cold so I'm worried about their safety, now more than ever." He knew that getting the rocks down was going to be the only way to get inside, as the basement level wasn't connected to the other two in any way, meaning it was just one big floor plan with one 'door' so to speak. "Dawn, I want you to do something very important for me, okay?"

"What is it?" She asked with a stern expression.

"I need you to head into Eterna City as fast as you can to get the Police force's Search and Rescue team out here. I'm the slower of the two of us, even without my backpack, and I'm going to try and get this rock wall down before they show up to make their job easier for them, Crogunk and Sudowoodo are perfect for this job…" Making sure that the girl had absorbed everything she had been told, he continued. "Do you understand me?"

"Roger!" Dawn mock saluted him, Piplup copying her from on the ground. "I'll leave Piplup here with you so you can use his water type moves to soften the rocks, it may help with taking it down or something… I dunno but…"

"Thank you," Brock interrupted her rambling with a kind smile. "I'll need Piplup's assistance. Just be careful, okay. It's bad enough one of us is hurt and I don't want anything to happen to you."

"No need to worry, I'll be fine!" She turned and started running, half turning to wave in a reassuring motion. "I'll be back with help before you know it!" As she disappeared from sight, Brock shared a sigh with her partner as he pulled out his two Pokémon's Poké Balls.

"That's when I worry the most…"

~0~o~0~

A dulling pain throbbed through his forehead as the memory of rocks raining down on them was the first thing he woke up to after the Zubat encounter. Ash couldn't help but groan in pain as he began to move, his head was pounding and he really just wanted to sleep with all honesty. Fighting the urge to close his eyes, he reached for his forehead, wincing at the sticky feeling that seemed to flow from the pain source. Now more awake, he realised he was in some kind of dug out, like a home made by a Pokémon to live in whilst in the caves. Looking to his side showed that Pikachu was out as well, but not hurt like he was – maybe hitting the ground hard knocked him into unconsciousness?

Slowly, considering the surroundings were still a bit blurry, Ash began to shake Pikachu's body with one hand to wake him up. Unlike normal, the electric type didn't shock his trainer for doing so, noticing the trail of blood from a cut near the fringe to the chin. Pikachu instantly began fussing over Ash, licking his cheek to – hopefully – make him feel better whilst at the same time he began to act defensively in case another Pokémon attacked them from out of nowhere.

The two froze as the patter of footsteps rose from the depths, over the dugout and towards their position. Pikachu's cheeks sparkled with barely restrained electricity as a figure slowly appeared over them, that figure being a blue little creature with a wide jaw, sharp teeth and a red underbelly. Seeing them awake, it cheered gleefully through the pile of berries it was carrying, more specifically being Oran and Sitrus berries. Using his Pokédex revealed to Ash that the Pokémon was a Gible, the pre-evolution of Garchomp, a pseudo legendary. The same pre-evolution that Brock was talking about.

The Gible jumped down into the dugout and handed over a couple of berries to her – her fin didn't have a cut out on it like a male Gible – guests. Instead of eating, the trainer decided to talk to the ground and dragon type. "So you brought us here?"

Gible nodded with a curt usage of her name as a sort of 'yes' response, taking a Sitrus berry for herself to eat. Pikachu, taking by her example, but into an Oran berry and cheered cutely as he stuck in like a glutton.

"The berries are to help us recover, you're trying to help us?"

Once again, Gible nodded as she picked up another Sitrus berry to give to Ash, handing it over herself personally as she made sure he ate something. Berries were one of the few Pokémon medicines that worked on humans as well, doing the exact same things as artificially made remedies could with a better taste and less sting from the spray. Realising that the Gible wasn't going to stop glaring at him until he ate the berry, Ash took a bite and smiled as the blurriness began to fade away almost immediately.

"Thanks Gible, I think we both needed that." Pikachu nodded in agreement, having stuffed quite a few berries for himself. Gible clapped in praise and smiled cheerily at her guest, glad to finally meet a trainer that wasn't kept away from the Zubat and the Bronzor. "Brock and Dawn must be so worried about us, we need to find them and make sure they're okay. Hey, Gible, could you lead us back to the entrance? They should be around there if they are still in the cave."

He noticed her frown as she slowly nodded and sighed, jumping back up the side of the dugout. Getting to his own two feet, Ash realised the structure wasn't too deep and was a simple step up for a human, not so much for a Pokémon like Gible. Pikachu climbed onto his shoulder, refusing to let go as he looked worriedly at the cut on his trainer's forehead. Sure, the berries may have helped Ash somewhat but it was still at risk from infection and he could have concussion as well, although the latter seemed unlikely by this point.

Gible led them through the maze of the cave she had dragged them through to safety, not happy about this situation one bit. This trainer was grateful for her help, and seemed to be pretty strong – only those with Eterna Gym badges were allowed past the city down the cycling road as the wild Pokémon became stronger the closer a trainer got to Hearthome – with the League as an ultimate goal. She had heard of trainers with the exact same ambition enter the cave before, only to leave if the Zubat pestered them too much or another Gible had been caught. She was never caught, she had never reached a trainer in time from her secluded corner of the cave, her hideaway from the other wild Pokémon.

She had a chance now, a chance to be caught and to be trained into a majestic Garchomp, a powerful beast that could defeat the strongest of foes. As of now, she had trained herself as much as she could have, but only a trainer could get her to the heights she wanted to reach. Maybe if this boy saw her training rock, then he might get the picture. Leading the two to her training point, she stopped and pointed at it with a short huff.

"So, I'm guessing you use this to make yourself stronger, huh?" She nodded at the human's words, scratching at it to make a point. The rock was covered in scratch marks and was burnt in multiple places from the flames of a Dragon Rage attack. It was painfully obvious that there wasn't much else that the Gible could do there to improve herself and possibly evolve under these conditions. She jumped as the human knelt beside her, smiling at her. "I never said thank you properly, Gible. We owe you one for helping us, I'll repay you no matter what." The Pikachu agreed, giving her an idea. She pointed to the boy's belt where multiple red and white spheres were clipped on. "Huh, oh a Poké Ball… wait, do you want to be captured?"

Gible jumped up and down with joy, bouncing as the boy finally understood what she wanted. He chuckled at her display. "I don't know if being caught really is the best way to repay someone for helping you, but I can see you aren't reaching your full potential here and want to get out… okay then," he pulled an empty Poké Ball from his pocket, enlarging it before holding it out towards her. "Look, I want to win the Sinnoh League and become a Pokémon Master someday. I can make you stronger, but you're going to have to put the effort in too. So, do you really want to join my team?" She placed her stubby hand on the button, being sucked in as the device shook three times and flashed to show a successful capture.

Almost immediately afterwards, Gible was released from the device, remembering that she still had to get her new trainer and partner out of the cave she had called a home for a long time. The boy knelt down beside her, grinning from ear to ear. "Gible, I'm Ash and this is my starter, Pikachu, and from now on, we're going to work together to win the Sinnoh League, okay?" She jumped up and hugged him, being careful of her jaw on his clothing. "Right, glad to have you on board but first thing's first… we need to get outta here."

~0~o~0~

Brock cursed under his breath as Piplup, Crogunk and Sudowoodo lay panting on the ground beside his feet. Despite their best efforts, all they had done was merge the rocks together with now solidified mud. He thought his plan would work but sadly, it didn't and that meant his best friend of three years was still trapped inside the cave. Plus some kind of Pokémon had dragged him and Pikachu off somewhere, which meant breaking the rock formation was the first step into saving them. As he sighed, a voice cried out from behind him, making him turn to see Dawn running towards him, followed by a group of people with fluorescent jackets on.

"No luck with the rocks?" She asked, looking at the mess it had become with a downtrodden expression until she noticed her partner on the floor. "Oh Piplup, you tried your hardest, I'm proud of you." Piplup puffed out his chest proudly before falling asleep in her arms as Brock returned his two Pokémon, whispering words of praise at their Poké Balls.

"So your friend is trapped inside there and presumed injured, right?" One of the people in the bright cyan jackets asked as the others prepared for getting the rock formation out the best way they knew how, by blowing it up, of course. "Have you heard a word from him since the incident?"

"No, a Pokémon dragged him and his Pikachu off deeper into the cave soon after it happened," Brock explained to the man in front of them. "I sent Dawn to get you whilst I tried to use my Pokémon and her Piplup to get the rocks out of the way without damaging the cave's walls."

"At least you did something to try and help, but blowing it up is the only way for us to get rid of it." The man said after hearing the teen's recount. "We always shout a warning first but normally, most Pokémon live deeper in the cave and not right at the front of it. Considering we aren't using that big of an explosive, the Pokémon may be shaken a bit but they'll be fine. As for your friend, I suggest staying put until we find him, the cave can be a labyrinth sometimes and…" The three turned as one of the other rescue team members, a female this time, yelled at her boss to come over after hearing a kid's voice from the other side of the fallen rocks.

"Hey, Ash! Can you hear us?!" Dawn got as close to the wall as she could and shouted out to him.

"Yeah, and I'm okay!" She sighed in relief as a muffled voice responded to her words, a highly familiar voice at that.

"Okay, listen up," The man called out, hoping the kid could hear him. "We're a part of the Eterna Search and Rescue division, we're here to get you out but to do that, we need to blast down these rocks. I need you to get a safe distance away from here and find cover. If there isn't any, curl up into a ball as tightly as you can as these rocks will fly due to the small quantity, got that?!"

"Clear!" Footsteps, muffled ones, dimmed away from the wall, giving the man the signal to go ahead. The explosives were placed and everything was ready.

"Stand back, the rocks could fall towards you!" The last non paramedic member of the team told Brock and Dawn before he pressed a button on a remote that caused a small explosion which made the rocks either crumble or fly backwards from the entrance. Most of them disappeared overhead, some landed around them but luckily there were no additional injuries. With the entrance to Wayward Cave now opened once again, this allowed Brock and Dawn to sneak past the rescue services and over to their friend who was sitting up with Pikachu and Gible looking up at him with worried expressions.

"Ash!" Brock frowned as he noticed the trail of blood running down the teenager's face, signalling he had some type of head injury. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, it's just a cut," Ash turned his attention to the Pokémon in front of him. "You two alright?" Pikachu nodded calmly, knowing that his trainer was telling the truth whereas Gible jumped into his arms, looking over him for any more cuts and bruises.

"Is that a Gible?" Dawn crouched down, noting that the blue sand dragon seemed pretty comfortable around her friend and mentor.

"You're right about that, and she's a member of my team!" Brock shook his head and chuckled as Dawn lost her jaw to the ground once again, Ash was never one to catch his Pokémon conventionally.

"Do I even have to ask how?" He asked when the thirteen-year-old began to rub the back of his head nervously.

"Nah, not really. You should know the drill by now Brocko, but Gible's joining us from now on, okay?" Brock wasn't allowed to respond as a person shooed them away, resulting in more members crowding around Ash to make sure he didn't have concussion and patch his cut up. As they were left ignored, hanging back behind the adults, Brock and Dawn gave each other looks of amusement that had crossed their faces before. It was just another normal day if you travelled around the region with a certain trouble magnet, Ash Ketchum.

* * *

 **Team Change**

 **Ash: Pikachu, Staravia, Turtwig, Froakie, Gible**


End file.
